Yesterday, two federal bills passed third reading in the Senate and will soon be signed into law. Bill C-244 and C-294 both amend Canada’s Copyright Act to allow circumvention of technology protection measures for repair and interoperability, respectively.
Bill C-244 is a broad-based Right to Repair bill opposed by multiple industry groups. The legislation applies to all products containing a technology protection measure (TPM) and allows the circumvention of them for the “sole purpose of maintaining or repairing a product, including any related diagnosing.” The legislation also makes clear that the circumvention also applies to third parties performing the work on behalf of the owner.
The bill does not create an affirmative duty or new requirements for manufacturers and dealers to follow. However, bill C-244 is seen as the first step in the process of pushing for Right to Repair legislation that contains provisions forcing manufacturers to provide unfettered access to software and creates burdensome requirements for dealers. Already there are calls from proponents to push for further legislation now that C-244 has paved the way by diminishing intellectual property rights.
For agriculture equipment, the next stage will be the Right to Repair consultation process with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. NAEDA is scheduled to participate in stakeholder roundtable discussions in November. We will be sharing the message that our industry is a leading example of one that supports customer self-repair and further legislation is not only unnecessary, but would create serious safety, environmental, and intellectual property risks. You can find our briefing document HERE.
Bill C-294 relates to allowing circumvention of TPMs for the purpose of interoperability. Our association has supported this bill as necessary to allow agriculture machinery systems from different manufacturers to work together. The passage of this bill does not presage or create the risk of illegal tampering and modification because interoperability relates to the manufacturing of farm equipment, not the end users of it. In other words, this bill ensures that dealers are able to carry the products their customers want instead of being restricted by manufacturers designing systems that are not interoperable with other products.
In the coming months we will need dealer engagement to share our message with stakeholders. There is no question that our industry supports the Right to Repair, but we oppose modification. Our biggest challenge is not changing our industry practices, rather it’s educating stakeholders about what we already do. NAEDA will be leading the charge to create opportunities to communicate our message.
If you have any questions relating to the status or substance of these bills, please contact your association office.Â
