Orphan Works Situation Under Canadian Copyright Act

Abstract

This article examines the orphan works solution under the Canadian Copyright Act. This article introduces the type of solution adopted by the Canadian Copyright Act. The author undertake a qualitative approach to a thorough investigation that discloses that Canada has adopted centrally granted licensing model which enables a public body to issue licenses for users of orphan works. The author also revealed that under the Canadian system a prospective user is required to carry out a reasonably diligent search prior to using orphan works. It is understood that the type of solution adopted by the Canadian law may not function well at the moment, due to technological advancements that allow public libraries and other public institutions to digitise the whole collections that they own. However, compulsory licenses model could be considered a barrier before such institutions to have all their collections digitised, therefore, it is preferred for the Canadian law to adopt extended collective licenses model in addition to the compulsory licensing model.