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Law Bytes

Technology Podcasts

In recent years the intersection between law, technology, and policy has exploded as digital policy has become a mainstream concern in Canada and around the world. This podcast explores digital policies in conversations with people studying the legal and policy challenges, set the rules, or are experts in the field. It provides a Canadian perspective, but since the internet is global, examining international developments and Canada’s role in shaping global digital policy is be an important part of the story. Lawbytes is hosted by Michael Geist, a law professor at the University of Ottawa, where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law and where he is a member of the Centre for Law, Technology and Society.

In recent years the intersection between law, technology, and policy has exploded as digital policy has become a mainstream concern in Canada and around the world. This podcast explores digital policies in conversations with people studying the legal and policy challenges, set the rules, or are experts in the field. It provides a Canadian perspective, but since the internet is global, examining international developments and Canada’s role in shaping global digital policy is be an important part of the story. Lawbytes is hosted by Michael Geist, a law professor at the University of Ottawa, where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law and where he is a member of the Centre for Law, Technology and Society.

Location:

Canada

Description:

In recent years the intersection between law, technology, and policy has exploded as digital policy has become a mainstream concern in Canada and around the world. This podcast explores digital policies in conversations with people studying the legal and policy challenges, set the rules, or are experts in the field. It provides a Canadian perspective, but since the internet is global, examining international developments and Canada’s role in shaping global digital policy is be an important part of the story. Lawbytes is hosted by Michael Geist, a law professor at the University of Ottawa, where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law and where he is a member of the Centre for Law, Technology and Society.

Twitter:

@lawbytespod

Language:

English

Episodes

Episode 83: Inside in the Industry Committee Hearing on the Proposed Rogers-Shaw Merger

4/12/2021
When the proposed Rogers – Shaw merger was announced last month, it immediately became a flashpoint for Canada’s ongoing debate over wireless competition and pricing. The Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology moved quickly to put the proposed merger under the microscope with hearings that have included Rogers and Shaw along with academics, competitors, and regulators. I was invited to appear before the committee and provide my take on the implications of the merger. This...

Duration:00:21:45

Episode 82: Jonathan Curtis on the CRTC's Push to Block Botnets

3/29/2021
The Canadian technology community has a long history of working together with government and regulators to counter online harms such botnets, spam, and malicious hacking. It therefore came as a surprise when the CRTC launched a consultation on addressing botnets that raised the possibility of the regulator stepping in with new blocking mandates. Jonathan Curtis has been at the heart of battling botnets and online harms for decades with work at Bell, the CRTC, and leading security companies....

Duration:00:35:30

Episode 81: Why Isn't Canada Supporting a Proposal to Help Developing Countries Gain Access to COVID-19 Vaccines?

3/22/2021
As countries around the globe work to get their citizen vaccinated against COVID-19, a battle over intellectual property rules has emerged at the World Trade Organization. Last year, Canada passed legislation designed to ensure that patents would not pose a barrier to securing supplies of a vaccine or treatment. A year later, developing countries around the world have looked to the WTO to develop similar standards through a waiver process that would speed up access to, and production of,...

Duration:00:22:32

Episode 80: A Roundtable on the Canadian Challenges of Delivering Universal, Affordable Internet Access

3/15/2021
A Canadian coalition of consumer advocates, civil society and social justice groups, policy experts, activists and independent ISPs will come together in a national Day of Action on Tuesday to demand the immediate implementation of federal measures to deliver affordable internet and wireless services in Canada and to put an end to constantly increasing bills. This week’s Law Bytes podcast brings together three people that bring unique perspectives to the issue: Madeleine Redfern, the former...

Duration:00:40:13

Episode 79: David Kaye on the Challenges of Reconciling Freedom of Expression and the Regulation of Online Harms

3/8/2021
Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault is expected to soon introduce new legislation designed to address online harms through increased regulation. Reports indicate that the bill will target five categories of illegal content: hate speech, terrorist content, content that incites violence, child sexual exploitative content and non-consensual sharing of intimate content. David Kaye is a clinical professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, and served as the United Nations...

Duration:00:35:51

Episode 78: Jennifer Jenkins on What Copyright Term Extension Could Mean for Canada

3/1/2021
For years, Canada resisted extending the term of copyright beyond the international standard of life of the author plus 50 years. That appears to have come to an end with the USMCA, which requires an extension. The Canadian government has just launched a public consultation on the issue, identifying several “accompanying measures” to address concerns about the negative impact of term extension. With consultation comments due by March 12th, Duke University’s Jennifer Jenkins, who is is a...

Duration:00:32:47

Episode 77: The Complexity of Internet Content Regulation - A Conversation with CIPPIC's Vivek Krishnamurthy

2/22/2021
Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault seems set to table another bill that would establish Internet content regulations, including requirements for Internet platforms to proactively remove many different forms of content, some illegal and others harmful or possibly even “hurtful.” Few would argue with the proposition that some regulation is needed, but venturing into government regulated takedown requirements of otherwise legal content raises complex questions about how to strike the...

Duration:00:37:47

Episode 76: Higher Consumer Costs and Less Choice - My Appearance Before the Heritage Committee on Broadcasting Act Reform

2/8/2021
The Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage last week started what it is calling a pre-study on Bill C-10, the Broadcasting Act reform bill. The hearings raises some significant procedural concerns given that the bill has not yet passed second reading so the committee is technically conducting a study about the bill, rather than studying the bill itself. Despite those qualms, I was pleased to be invited to appear before the committee and discuss some of the concerns that I’ve identified with...

Duration:00:16:26

Episode 75: The Digital Taxman Cometh

2/1/2021
Digital tax policy has emerged as major issue around the world. Canada is no exception. Late last year, the Canadian government announced plans to act on all three fronts: Bill C-10 seeks to address mandated Cancon payment and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland has promised digital sales taxes by July and what sounds like a digital services tax in 2022. I spoke with Georgetown University professor Itai Grinberg, a leading expert on cross-border taxation and digital tax issues on December 15,...

Duration:00:29:59

Episode 74: Heidi Tworek on the Challenges of Internet Platform Regulation

1/25/2021
The Lawbytes podcast took a breather over the holidays and into early January, but there seemingly is no break for digital policy issues. Over the past few weeks, Internet platforms have found themselves squarely in the public eye as company after company – from Shopify to Twitter to Facebook de-platformed former US President Donald Trump in response to the events in Washington earlier this month. Dr. Heidi Tworek of the University of British Columbia is one of Canada’s most prolific...

Duration:00:28:30

Episode 73: The Broadcasting Act Blunder - Why Minister Guilbeault is Wrong

12/14/2020
Canada is currently considering major reforms to how it regulates Internet services. Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault's Bill C-10 would dramatically reshape the Broadcasting Act by regulating foreign Internet sites and services with the prospect of mandated registration, payments to support Canadian content, confidential data disclosures, and discoverability requirements. The bill would also remove policies supporting Canadian ownership of the broadcasting system and reduce...

Duration:00:45:22

Episode 72: Emily Laidlaw on the Good, the Bad, and the Missed Opportunities Behind Canada's Privacy Reform

12/7/2020
Canada’s new privacy bill is only a couple of weeks old but it is already generating debate in the House of Commons and careful study and commentary from the privacy community. As the biggest overhaul of Canada’s privacy rules in two decades, the bill will undoubtedly be the subject of deep analysis and lengthy committee review, likely to start early in 2021.Professor Emily Laidlaw of the University of Calgary, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Cybersecurity Law, joins the podcast with...

Duration:00:33:45

Episode 71: Minister Navdeep Bains on Canada's New Privacy Bill

11/30/2020
It has taken many years, but Canada finally appears ready to engage in an overhaul of its outdated private sector privacy law. Earlier this month, the Innovation, Science and Industry Minister Navdeep Bains introduced Bill C-11, which, if enacted, would fundamentally re-write Canada’s privacy rules. To discuss the thinking behind the bill and the government’s privacy plans for privacy, Minister Bains joins the Law Bytes podcast as he identifies some the benefits of the bill, clarifies the...

Duration:00:23:37

Episode 70: "It's Massive Free Distribution" - Village Media's Jeff Elgie on Why His Company Opposes Lobbying Efforts to Establish a Licence for Linking to News Stories

11/16/2020
News Media Canada, the lobby group representing the major newspaper publishers in Canada recently launched a new campaign that calls for the creation of a government digital media regulatory agency that would have the power to establish mandated payments by Internet companies merely for linking to news articles. But not everyone in the sector - or even within News Media Canada - agrees with the position. Jeff Elgie is the CEO and majority shareholder of Village Media, a digital-only media...

Duration:00:39:00

Episode 69: Bram Abramson on the Government's Plan to Regulate Internet Streaming Services

11/9/2020
Last week, Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault introduced Bill C-10, legislation that would significantly reform Canada’s Broadcasting Act. A foundational part of what he has called a “get money from web giants” legislative strategy, the bill grants new powers to Canada’s telecom and broadcast regulator (the CRTC) to regulate online streaming services. Bram Abramson is one of Canada’s leading communications law lawyers and managing director of a new digital risk and rights strategy...

Duration:00:41:18

Episode 68: Mike Pal on What the Canadian Experience Teaches About the Intersection Between Election Law and the Internet

11/2/2020
The world will be focused on the United States this week as the U.S. Presidential election is slated to take place on Tuesday, November 3rd. The role of social media has been in the spotlight in the US for months with calls for regulation, a range of responses from the major companies, and ongoing concerns about the immediate aftermath of the election and fears that their platforms could be weaponized if the winner is in dispute. Canada had its own national election one year ago and enacted...

Duration:00:30:38

Episode 67: Tamir Israel on Facial Recognition Technologies at the Border

10/26/2020
Facial recognition technologies seem likely to become an increasingly common part of travel with scans for boarding passes, security clearance, customs review, and baggage pickup just some of the spots where your face could become the source of screening. Tamir Israel, staff lawyer at CIPPIC, the Samuelson-Glushko Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic at the University of Ottawa, recently completed a major study on the use of facial recognition technologies at the border. He...

Duration:00:31:15

Episode 66: Ann Cavoukian on Why Canadians Can Trust the COVID Alert App

10/19/2020
As the second wave of COVID-19 seems to have arrived in many countries, the importance of measures such as social distancing, masks, testing, and tracing takes on increased importance. In Canada, the COVID Alert App is another important part of that toolkit. The app has been downloaded more than 4.5 million times and has been used to alert users to a potential exposure to the virus nearly 1,700 times. Despite the potential benefits, there remain many skeptics. Ann Cavoukian, a three-time...

Duration:00:22:52

Episode 65: My Ian Kerr Memorial Lecture - Privacy and Zambonis in the Age of COVID-19

8/24/2020
One year ago this week, Ian Kerr, a friend, colleague, teacher, and prescient scholar in the world of law, technology, and ethics, passed away. Ian’s loss sparked an outpouring of stories of a truly exceptional person whose friendship, mentorship, and en-Kerr-agement, left a remarkable legacy with so many citing his impact as a defining moment in their lives and careers. Given the impact Ian had on the privacy world, the IAPP launched an annual lecture in his honour at the IAPP Canada...

Duration:00:37:34

Episode 64: "You're Seeing the Breakup of the Web" - Anupam Chander on the Battle over TikTok

8/17/2020
TikTok has found itself at the centre of a global geo-political fight between the United States and China. U.S. President Donald Trump, citing privacy, censorship, and national security concerns, first declared his plan to ban the app from the country and later followed up with an Executive Order prohibiting commercial activities with TikTok after a 45 day implementation period. What does the battle over TikTok and other Chinese-owned apps mean for their users and for the future of an open...

Duration:00:31:15

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