COPYRIGHT IN FOREIGN WORKS: CANADA'S INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS

Abstract

It is anticipated that proposals for a complete overhaul of the copyright laws will be presented to the Canadian Parliament in the very near future. The new legislation will likely extend protection to works and grant rights beyond those existing under the current Copyright Act of 1924. This study examines the extent to which any new legislation must grant national treatment to foreign works, particularly technologies that have developed and rights that have been proposed since the 1924 Act. The focus is on Canada's obligations under the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works and under the Universal Copyright Convention in the light of their history and purposes and in the light of the various conflicting interpretations of the treaties that have been offered. The study concludes that current proposals not to extend national treatment in respect of certain new categories of works and rights are for the most part consistent with Canada's international obligations.