Although the proposed changes to Canada’s Copyright Act have their benefits, they have failed to consider the visual-artist community on two key points: fair dealing and Resale Right, say advocates.

The proposal to expand fair dealing to educational use will leave artists losing out on an important source of income, says CARFAC (Canadian Artists' Representation/le Front des artistes), adding schools will no longer have to pay for slides or other visual aids.

“It amounts to about 12% of visual artist income,” said Julie McIntyre, a Vancouver artist and the president of CARFAC B.C. “So it can be a substantial loss.”

McIntyre said the guidelines surrounding this new proposal are unclear and many artists will need to go to court to figure out their rights, an option that few have due to financial constraints.

The changes also failed to include a Resale Right. This right would have allowed artists to receive a percentage royalty payment for the resale of their work. It currently exists in 56 countries and the state of California.

“We are really disappointed that they didn’t include the Resale Right,” said McIntyre. “I know it’s a huge job, but it’s a huge loss of income for artists.”

The value of an art piece is usually not recognized until it hits the secondary market, according to McIntyre.

“It takes time for art to develop and become part of the history,” said McIntyre. “You don’t always know if it’s going to become a classic, so a lot of visual artists depend on this secondary market.”

However, McIntyre is not giving up and CARFAC will continue to campaign for the inclusion of the Resale Right. If it is adopted in Canada, an artist will still benefit from the resale if his or her work is sold in any of the other 56 countries involved.

“It’s only something that affects visual artists because they have only the one, original piece,” said McIntyre. “They don’t rely on selling copies of their work like books or albums.”

See also http://www.straight.com/article-327319/vancouver/new-copyright-legislati....