Anti-piracy measures pushed; producers call for broadcaster involvement

摘要

An organization representing cinema owners and another representing the major Hollywood studios is asking the Canadian government to tighten the Copyright Act as part of its review of Canada's feature film industry. The two organizations, the Motion Picture Theatre Associations of Canada (MPTAC) and the Canadian Motion Picture Distributors Association (CMPDA) also called for changes to the criminal code that would make it illegal to video or audiotape movies as they are being screened in theatres. "Organized crime is the biggest threat to the film industry. The counterfeit film business is more profitable than heroin trafficking and conviction carries trivial penalties," CMPDA president Doug Frith told the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage last week. The standing committee is reviewing Canadian Heritage's Canada Feature Film Policy as it is currently in its fifth year. Frith noted that pirates use Montreal, the first city in the world where the French language version is available, to get pirate copies.