Controversial 'iPod tax' struck down on appeal

[phishtaper]

Controversial 'iPod tax' struck down on appeal

GRANT ROBERTSON

From Friday's Globe and Mail

January 11, 2008 at 4:10 AM EST

A proposed levy on digital music players that became known this summer as the "iPod tax" has been struck down after opponents argued it was unfair to Canadians.

The Federal Court of Appeal has ruled that the Canadian Copyright Board did not have the right to put levies on new digital music players when it announced such fees would be allowed starting this year.

The board wanted to place a charge of between $5 and $75 on each new device, depending on the number of songs it could hold. Those fees, which are similar to the levies on blank compact discs, are designed to compensate the recording industry for music that is copied.

However, opponents said the fees are unfair because they imply that all owners of iPods are using them to transfer and listen to pirated music.

"The Copyright Board erred in law when it concluded that it has the legal authority to certify the tariff," the appeal court said in its ruling.

The Retail Council of Canada, which argued at hearings this week, welcomed the decision last night.

"This has been a very long battle, but a necessary one," retail council president Diane Brisebois said in a statement. "Retailers have fought against these levies since their creation in 1997 because it taxes a product based on what a consumer possibly could use it for."

The appeal stems from a lengthy debate this summer where lawmakers argued over whether digital gadgets were simply players of music or whether they captured songs as a recording device.

The distinction is important since blank discs are subject to levies because they are often used to record and duplicate songs. Since the hard drives on digital recorders cannot be removed, the recording industry argued they are similar to a blank CD.

Opponents of the levy said the iPods are like portable CD players or stereos, which are not subject to such fees.

[bouche]

YAY! They completely disrespect people that use their music devices primarily for legally recorded live music, audiobooks, podcasts, legally purchased tunes online, etc.

Since DRM is being squashed by all the labels, it's clear that the music you buy is yours to use on any device you own.

Also, I have always wondered why canadian copyright board should get money from people who steal american music?