Copyright Board Commission du droit d’auteur Canada Canada Ottawa, February 13, 2020 Our File: 2019-UO/TI-15 Ms. Egan, The Copyright Board has reviewed your licence application filed on June 6, 2019 for the reproduction of the 1969 movie “Land on the Move” produced by Lesser Studio Ltd. and Westminster Films Ltd., and has determined that a licence cannot be issued as your application does not meet one or more of the requirements of section 77 of the Copyright Act (the “Act”).
In this regard, subsection 77(1) of the Act states that [w]here, on application to the Board by a person who wishes to obtain a licence to use a) a published work, b) a fixation of a performer’s performance, c) a published sound recording, or d) a fixation of a communication signal in which copyright subsists, the Board is satisfied that the applicant has made reasonable efforts to locate the owner of the copyright and that the owner cannot be located, the Board may issue to the applicant a licence to do an act mentioned in section 3, 15, 18 or 21, as the case may be. [our underline]
Subsection 2.2(1) of the Act states that For the purpose of this Act, “publication” means (a) in relation to works, (i) making copies of a work available to the public; […] but does not include (c) the performance in public, or the communication to the public by telecommunication, of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work […] [our underline]
- 2 - After careful analysis, the Board does not consider that the movie you wish to reproduce, “Land on the Move”, was published within the meaning of section 2.2(1) of the Act. As such, the Copyright Board cannot issue a licence.
The fact that the Board cannot issue a licence, should not be interpreted as meaning that the reproductions you wish to make are, or are not, an infringement of copyright. However, as the Board cannot provide legal advice to the public, we encourage you to obtain legal advice from a lawyer specialized in the field.
Regards,
Lara Taylor Secretary General