Michael Geist
Encyclopedia
Michael Allen Geist is a Canadian
academic, and the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-Commerce Law at the University of Ottawa
. Geist was educated at the University of Western Ontario
where he received his Bachelors of Laws before going on to get his Masters of Laws at both Osgoode Hall Law School
and Cambridge University
. After that, he attended Columbia Law School
where he got his Doctorate in Law.
His weekly columns on new technology and its legal ramifications appear in the Vancouver Sun, Toronto Star
and the Ottawa Citizen
. He served on Canada's National Task Force on Spam and is the founder of the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic
. Geist is active on many boards, including the CANARIE
Board of Directors , the CanLII
Board of Directors , the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
's Expert Advisory Board , the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Advisory Board , and on the Information Program Sub-Board of the Open Society Institute
. He was also a board member of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority
, which manages the dot.ca
domain, for six years.
Geist was named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2002. In 2010, he was listed globally as one of the top fifty influential people in regards to intellectual property by Managing Intellectual Property
.
According to Dr. Geist and many others the Canadian legislation included the worst aspects of the 1998 U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act
(DMCA). In December, 2007, Geist said the legislation will likely "mirror the DMCA with strong anti-circumvention legislation — far beyond what is needed to comply with the WIPO Internet treaties," and will likely contain no protection for "flexible fair dealing. No parody exception. No time shifting exception. No device shifting exception. No expanded backup provision. Nothing."
Widespread online and offline support, from activist and author Cory Doctorow
to over 30,000 Facebook
users, led to the tabling of the copyright legislation by Industry Minister Jim Prentice
until 2008.
(ACTA) which he covers frequently on his blog, criticizing the negotiation process for lack of transparency and warning of possible negative consequences for Internet users.
Then in October 2011, when the Canadian government began attempts to pass a new bill on copyright reform, which included digital lock rules, called Bill C-11, he wrote “The Daily Digital Lock Dissenter” on his blog . This was a daily blog entry where he introduced former submissions to the government about how Canadians felt about the restrictive digital lock regulations in regards to Bill C-32 and based on the 2009 national copyright consultation. He argued that while Bill C-11 had some valid points, it was too restrictive because it did not take a balanced approach and it was “primarily about satisfying U.S. pressure, not public opinion” .
and other major companies for their involvement in limiting smaller ISPs. .
Also in 2011, he wrote a study on the true transport costs of a gigabyte for a Canadian consumer from an ISP and concluded it was roughly a total of eight cents per gigabyte but this report was later denounced by the major ISPs, most notably Bell Canada.
's Wikipedia
article were traced back to Industry Canada
computers.
He maintains the following websites:
Privacyinfo.ca, Speak Out On Copyright, Net Neutrality and UDRPinfo.com.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
academic, and the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-Commerce Law at the University of Ottawa
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
. Geist was educated at the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
where he received his Bachelors of Laws before going on to get his Masters of Laws at both Osgoode Hall Law School
Osgoode Hall Law School
Osgoode Hall Law School is a Canadian law school, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and affiliated with York University. Named after the first Chief Justice of Ontario, William Osgoode, the law school was established by The Law Society of Upper Canada in 1889 and was the only accredited law...
and Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. After that, he attended Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, is one of the oldest and most prestigious law schools in the United States. A member of the Ivy League, Columbia Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Columbia University in New York City. It offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in...
where he got his Doctorate in Law.
His weekly columns on new technology and its legal ramifications appear in the Vancouver Sun, Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
and the Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa Citizen
The Ottawa Citizen is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Canada. According to the Canadian Newspaper Association, the paper had a 2008 weekly circulation of 900,197.- History :...
. He served on Canada's National Task Force on Spam and is the founder of the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic
Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic
Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic is a legal clinic at the University of Ottawa focused on maintaining fair and balanced policy making in Canada related to technology...
. Geist is active on many boards, including the CANARIE
CANARIE
CANARIE is a Canadian government-supported non-profit corporation, founded in 1993, which maintains a set of leased wide area network links for the transfer of very large data files. The core network consists of 19000 km of fibre optic cable capable of speeds as high as 100 Gbps but...
Board of Directors , the CanLII
CanLII
The Canadian Legal Information Institute is a non-profit organization created and funded by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, on behalf of its 14 member law societies...
Board of Directors , the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
Privacy Commissioner of Canada
The Privacy Commissioner of Canada is a special ombudsman and an officer of parliament who reports directly to the House of Commons and the Senate....
's Expert Advisory Board , the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is an international non-profit digital rights advocacy and legal organization based in the United States...
Advisory Board , and on the Information Program Sub-Board of the Open Society Institute
Open Society Institute
The Open Society Institute , renamed in 2011 to Open Society Foundations, is a private operating and grantmaking foundation started by George Soros, aimed to shape public policy to promote democratic governance, human rights, and economic, legal, and social reform...
. He was also a board member of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority
Canadian Internet Registration Authority
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority is the organization that manages the .CA country code top-level domain, the policies that support Canada’s Internet community and Canada’s involvement in international Internet governance. CIRA is a member-driven organization...
, which manages the dot.ca
.ca
.ca is the Internet country code top-level domain for Canada. The domain name registry that operates it is the Canadian Internet Registration Authority . Registrants of .ca domains must meet the Canadian Presence Requirements as defined by the registry...
domain, for six years.
Geist was named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2002. In 2010, he was listed globally as one of the top fifty influential people in regards to intellectual property by Managing Intellectual Property
Managing Intellectual Property
Managing Intellectual Property is a monthly magazine published in English and specializes in intellectual property. It was founded in 1990 and claims to have more than 10,000 readers. MIP is part of the Euromoney Legal Media Group. Jeremy Phillips launched the magazine and sold it to Euromoney...
.
2007 Canadian copyright legislation
Geist received widespread public attention from mainstream and citizen media in the winter of 2007 for leading the public response to proposed Canadian copyright changes.According to Dr. Geist and many others the Canadian legislation included the worst aspects of the 1998 U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization . It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures that control access to...
(DMCA). In December, 2007, Geist said the legislation will likely "mirror the DMCA with strong anti-circumvention legislation — far beyond what is needed to comply with the WIPO Internet treaties," and will likely contain no protection for "flexible fair dealing. No parody exception. No time shifting exception. No device shifting exception. No expanded backup provision. Nothing."
Widespread online and offline support, from activist and author Cory Doctorow
Cory Doctorow
Cory Efram Doctorow is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who serves as co-editor of the blog Boing Boing. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent of the Creative Commons organization, using some of their licences for his books...
to over 30,000 Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
users, led to the tabling of the copyright legislation by Industry Minister Jim Prentice
Jim Prentice
James "Jim" Prentice, PC, QC is a Canadian lawyer, and politician. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons as a candidate of the Conservative Party of Canada...
until 2008.
ACTA
Michael Geist is considered an expert about the proposed international Anti-Counterfeiting Trade AgreementAnti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement is a proposed plurilateral agreement for the purpose of establishing international standards on intellectual property rights enforcement...
(ACTA) which he covers frequently on his blog, criticizing the negotiation process for lack of transparency and warning of possible negative consequences for Internet users.
Bill C-32 and Bill C-11
In December 2010, he wrote a paper titled “Clearing Up the Copyright Confusion: Fair Dealing and Bill C-32” where he summarizes and critically examines some of the main issues of this bill.Then in October 2011, when the Canadian government began attempts to pass a new bill on copyright reform, which included digital lock rules, called Bill C-11, he wrote “The Daily Digital Lock Dissenter” on his blog . This was a daily blog entry where he introduced former submissions to the government about how Canadians felt about the restrictive digital lock regulations in regards to Bill C-32 and based on the 2009 national copyright consultation. He argued that while Bill C-11 had some valid points, it was too restrictive because it did not take a balanced approach and it was “primarily about satisfying U.S. pressure, not public opinion” .
Usage-based billing
In 2011, Geist wrote about usage based billing and its position in Canada in his blog at michaelgeist.ca. Here, he criticized the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC) history of inability to foster an atmosphere of competition that would allow third-party internet service providers (ISPs) to gain a foothold in the Canadian market. He did note, with the CRTC's usage based oral hearing on July 19, 2011, that they were making efforts to address this lack of competition and criticized Bell CanadaBell Canada
Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
and other major companies for their involvement in limiting smaller ISPs. .
Also in 2011, he wrote a study on the true transport costs of a gigabyte for a Canadian consumer from an ISP and concluded it was roughly a total of eight cents per gigabyte but this report was later denounced by the major ISPs, most notably Bell Canada.
Other activities
In 2008, Geist found that favourable edits to Jim PrenticeJim Prentice
James "Jim" Prentice, PC, QC is a Canadian lawyer, and politician. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons as a candidate of the Conservative Party of Canada...
's Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
article were traced back to Industry Canada
Industry Canada
Industry Canada is the department of the Government of Canada with responsibility for regional economic development, investment, and innovation/research and development. The department employs 6104 FTEs across Canada....
computers.
He maintains the following websites:
Privacyinfo.ca, Speak Out On Copyright, Net Neutrality and UDRPinfo.com.
Books
- From "Radical Extremism" to "Balanced Copyright": Canadian Copyright and the Digital Agenda (editor)
- Internet Law in Canada
- In the Public Interest: The Future of Canadian Copyright Law (editor) -- a series of essays regarding Bill C-60Bill C-60Bill C-60 was a proposed law to amend the Canadian Copyright Act initiated by the Government of Canada in the First Session of the Thirty-Eighth Parliament...