Thread by @mgeist

Hard to think of a worse week in Canadian digital policy. First, Bill C-11 continues to chug along with the government relying on cartoons to misleadingly claim that the bill won’t touch user generated content (it clearly does). 1/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1509169769047547916

Meanwhile, the Chair of the CRTC implausibly claims independence while actively supporting Bill C-11, legislation that would govern the Commission. The lack of public trust in the CRTC is well-earned with the Chair still facing charges of bias. 2/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1511003116929536003

The government follows up with Bill C-18, which features massive government intervention into the market alongside mandated payments for links and “facilitating access” to news. CRTC to decide who qualifies and if licensing deals are ok. 3/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1511477863555518467

The justifications for Bill C-18 from Heritage Minister @pablorodriguez amount to gaslighting with the government intervention somehow characterized as “market-based” approach, leaving @VassyKapelos visibly puzzled. 4/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1511528675489030146

Then #Budget2022 has its own surprise: buried on page 274 but never mentioned by @cafreeland is copyright term extension, a tax on consumers and serious harm to accessing Canadian culture. No new entry into public domain for a generation. 5/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1512417432790515719

Unsurprisingly all of this leads to lots of high-fiving from lobby groups and the media. The interests of the broader public, Internet users, digital first creators, independent media, education seemingly no longer a priority. Tough week. 6/6

https://twitter.com/mgeist/status/1512146854737330198