Dear Access Copyright: Piss Off!

Access Copyright has just made itself the paper-and-ink version of the RIAA. How you might ask? They have just just filed suit against Staples for "illegally allowing customers to copy works protected by copyright.

This lawsuit is such an obvious derivative of the "sue your customer" model that the RIAA has used it's ridiculous. The claim is that because Staples offers a "pay to copy" service, that they are "profiting from the copying of protected works":

Staples/Business Depot is a sizeable, for-profit organization that has
built part of its business through a lucrative service that exploits the
published works of authors, photographers and publishers. Companies that
photocopy illegally are effectively taking money directly out of the pockets
of creators and publishers who depend on book sales and copyright royalties
for their livelihood.
"Companies that profit from illegal photocopying are undermining the work
of others," said Maureen Cavan, Executive Director of Access Copyright.
"Staples/Business Depot is no different from those organizations that profit
from illegally downloading copyright protected music or the unauthorized
sharing of videos and published works on the internet."

This is a direct assault on the legitimate notion of "fair use", which justifiably allows people to make copies of articles or portions of books for such legitimate purposes as research. It seeks to attack "fair use" by attacking an organization that makes photocopiers available for public use. The expansions on this are amazingly broad - ranging from suing any company that charges money for access to a photocopier (outfits like "UPS Store" and FedEx/Kinko's would be prime candidates for further lawsuits), or as the Canadian Recording industry has done with recordable media, get a levy imposed on copiers and scanner devices on the supposition that it will be used for "piracy" at some point.

The long run play for consumers? (including students, researchers and so on)

Basically, you will see your costs skyrocket largely because yet another unaccountable group "representing artists"(™) will be making it more difficult for you to do legitimate work and research without their hand in your pocket.

The very fact that this lawsuit has even been filed in Canada is offensive, and it further reinforces my belief that the Intellectual Property laws in Canada desperately need a massive overhaul - one that protects us all from the predations of corporate lawyers whose next bonus hinges on their ability to sue us individually or collectively on the supposition we are engaging in piracy.