Weekly News (May 2, 2023)

Compiled by Brad McNeil with Sara Bannerman

McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

(April 25  – May 1, 2023)

Canadian News 

• [ONLINE STREAMING BILL] Ottawa’s controversial online streaming bill becomes law despite protests from digital giants (Toronto Star) 
• [ONLINE STREAMING BILL] Senate passes Bill C-11, an online streaming law that targets foreign tech giants and platforms (The Globe and Mail) 
• [ONLINE STREAMING BILL] Ottawa’s online streaming bill is law. Now the real fight begins (Toronto Star) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ONLINE STREAMING BILL] Canada’s Contentious Streaming Legislation Receives Final Approval (Wall Street Journal) 
• [ONLINE STREAMING BILL] Liberals vow to provide ‘greater clarity’ as controversial online streaming bill becomes law (National post)  
• [ONLINE NEWS ACT] What is Bill C-18, and how could it affect how Canadians use the internet? (The Globe and Mail)  
• [ONLINE NEWS ACT] CRTC lacks expertise to regulate online news bill says its former chair (The Globe and Mail)  
• [CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MATERIALS/ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] Quebec man sentenced to prison for creating AI-generated, synthetic child pornography  (Toronto Sun) 
• [PRIVACY] Liberal Party of Canada halts use of facial verification technology (The Globe and Mail)  
• [PRIVACY] B.C. Court of Appeal rules parents’ medical records should not be accessed by social workers (The Globe and Mail) 
• [ACCESS TO INFORMATION] Liberals changing sex offender registry in response to Supreme Court decision (Toronto Star) 
• [CENSORSHIP] Canadian writer Rupi Kaur’s book among most banned in U.S. schools so far this year (Toronto Star) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY] Grimes supports and promises royalties for AI-generated songs: ‘Use my voice without penalty’ (Toronto Star) 
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS) Rogers posts profit gain, partners with Musk’s Starlink to deliver remote service (The Globe and Mail)  
• [ONLINE STREAMING BILL] OPINION: Kate Taylor: Bill C-11 is a victory for the possible (The Globe and Mail) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION] OPINION: Sam Andrey: Why Canadians don’t trust social media companies to self-regulate and want the government to step in (Toronto Star) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] OPINION: Kean Birch: Failure to regulate artificial intelligence will entrench Big Tech’s power over us (The Globe and Mail) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] OPINION: Daniel Tsai: Deep faked Drake proves by the time regulators catch up with AI, it may be too late (Toronto Star) 

International News

• [PLATFORM REGULATION/ CONTENT MODERATION] EU singles out 19 tech giants for online content rules (Reuters) 
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS POLICY] Internet service transparency bill passes in House (The Brandon Sun) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/COPYRIGHT] EU proposes new copyright rules for generative AI (Reuters) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/PRIVACY] ChatGPT Ban Lifted in Italy After Data-Privacy Concessions (Wall Street Journal) 
• [DEFAMATION] Inside the Defamation Trial That Was ‘Over Before It Began’ (New York Times) 
• [CENSORSHIP] Rights groups ask Russian court to strike down law against war protests (Reuters) 
• [CYBERSECURITY] Chinese and Russian hackers are making moves. Here’s how the NSA is trying to counter them. ; NSA cybersecurity director Rob Joyce discusses foreign hackers, spying and the counterintelligence risks from the Discord Leaks. (Washington Post) 
• [CYBERSECURITY/SURVEILLANCE/PRIVACY] FBI Warrantless Searches of Americans’ Communications Declined Sharply, Spy Agency Says (Wall Street Journal) 
• [SURVEILLANCE/PRIVACY] How Mexico Became the Biggest User of the World’s Most Notorious Spy Tool (New York Times) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] Facial Recognition Powers ‘Automated Apartheid’ in Israel, Report Says (New York Times) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/PRIVACY/COPYRIGHT] Chatbots Are Digesting the Internet. The Internet Wants to Get Paid. (Wall Street Journal) 
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Tweets Become Harder to Believe as Labels Change Meaning (New York Times) 
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Twitter asks congressional campaigns to pay up for verification ; The company said in an email it is “de-badging” personal and campaign accounts for lawmakers. (Washington Post) 
• [PLATFORM REGULATION] Echoes of History in New National Push to Shield Children Online (New York Times) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/DISCRIMINATION] U.S. policing AI at companies to make sure it doesn’t violate civil rights (Reuters) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/DISCRIMINATION] U.S. Law-Enforcement Agencies Seek to Combat AI Bias; DOJ, FTC and others focus on how ChatGPT and other tools could be used to discriminate or harm competition (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/ELECTION COMMUNICATIONS] AI-driven political ads are here. This lawmaker is sounding the alarm. ; Rep. Yvette Clarke is calling for disclosures of AI use in political ads. (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/ELECTION COMMUNICATIONS] Republicans counter Biden announcement with dystopian, AI-aided video (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] ‘The Godfather of A.I.’ Leaves Google and Warns of Danger Ahead (New York Times) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE] AI-generated Drake song isn’t art, but the latest example of appropriation (Washington Post) 
• [ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/COPYRIGHT] OPINION: Edward Lee: A terrible decision on AI-made images hurts creators (Washington Post)  
• [DEFAMATION] OPINION: Marsha Lederman: Dominion Voting Systems’ legal win against Fox News doesn’t solve the bigger problem (The Globe and Mail) 

(April 25  – May 1, 2023)

Federal Court of Appeal

• [COMPETITION/SEMICONDUCTORS] Decision: Jensen v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. – 2023 FCA 89 – 2023, 04, 28 – Federal Court of Appeal Decisions 

Canadian Heritage 

• Online Streaming Act receives Royal Assent 

CRTC

• Statement by the CRTC Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, Vicky Eatrides, on the Online Streaming Act

Microsoft

• Reflecting on our responsible AI program: Three critical elements for progress

Supreme Court of Canada

• [PUBLICATION BAN]Scheduled Hearing: May 17, at 9:30 am: 202340223 – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, et al. v. Aydin Coban, et al. – (British Columbia) (Criminal) (By Leave) 

Senate of Canada

• Planned and Possible Sitting Days: The Senate will sit from May 2  to May 4, 2023, with a possible sitting day on May 5, 2023
  • Committee Meetings:
    • Transport and Communications (TRCM): May 2. 2023 at 9:00 am – Topic: Bill C-18, An Act respecting online communications platforms that make news content available to persons in Canada 
    • Transport and Communications (TRCM): May 3, 2023 at 6:45 pm – Topic: Bill C-18, An Act respecting online communications platforms that make news content available to persons in Canada 
    •  
  • Bills on the Agenda:
    • C-288: An Act to amend the Telecommunications Act (transparent and accurate broadband services information) – At second reading in the Senate 

House of Commons

• Planned and Possible Sitting Days: The House of Commons will sit from May 2 to May 4, 2023, and also on May 8, 2023.
  • Committee Meetings:
    • Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (PROC): May 2, 2023 at 6:30 pm – Topic: Foreign Election Interference
    • Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (ETHI): May 3, 2023 at 4:30 pm – Topic: Foreign Interference and Threats to the Integrity of Democratic Institutions, Intellectual Property and the Canadian State 
    • CANCELLED: Standing Committee on Public Accounts (PACP): May 4, 2023 at 4:30 pm – Topic: Report 2: Connectivity in Remote Areas  

CRTC

• Open Proceedings
  • CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings
  • CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

Public Consultations:

• CRTC
  • Open:Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-39 – Call for comments – Development of a regulatory framework to improve network reliability and resiliency – Mandatory notification and reporting about major telecommunications service outages  
  • Open: Share your comments on the review of the Broadband fund (start date March 23, 2023 to July 21, 2023) 
• Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
  • Open:Strategic Intellectual Property Program Review (November 15, 2022 to April 30, 2023) 
  • Planned: Consultation on CIPO’s 2023-2024 client service standards (March 1, 2023 to March 31, 2023) 
  • Planned: May 11, 2023 – National Capital Region – To consider the broadcasting applications listed in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-49, View hearing documents (2023-49) 
• Statistics Canada 
  • Open:Visible minority concept consultative engagement (October 11, 2022 to June 30, 2023) 
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada 
  • Planned: Request for Proposal for Facial Recognition Software Service Contract (Maintenance) 

Have a suggestion? Email Sara Bannerman at banners@mcmaster.ca 

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