In Defence of Copyright

“This book is filled with important information and excellent insights. … You should buy it … please don’t illegally download it.” — John Degen, The British Columbia Review

Copyright is one of the cornerstones of western civilization; it is as relevant today, if not more so, than it was when the first formal copyright laws were enacted in the eighteenth century.

With the rise of the Digital Age, new challenges have been brought to the frontlines of the copyright battle. Online piracy, extensive unauthorized use of copyrighted works by educational institutions, and artificial intelligence are testing the ability of copyright laws to protect creators and their intellectual property.

Canada’s copyright laws are out of step with other western democracies and are overdue for updating. They need to be resilient and adaptive to the digital age to promote the production of new work and ideas.