The Government recognises the inefficiencies and uncertainty that can arise from agreements which seek to exclude or restrict legal copyright exceptions and wants to ensure that statutory rights tofairly deal with copyright material are protected.
The Government will review whether new (technological protection measures) TPM exceptions should be created to prescribe particular legitimate uses of copyright material, where they fall within the requirements of section 249 of the Copyright Act. The Government will also implement a simplified process for future TPM exception reviews to ensure that it can more quickly respond to the needs of stakeholders seeking TPM exceptions and reduce the burden of the review process on all stakeholders.
The Government supports the ability for Australian consumers to affordably access copyright content in a timely manner, noting that this is a key factor in preventing copyright infringement. However, the Government notes that other measures, such as terms and conditions under consumer contracts and/or regulatory arrangements in jurisdictions outside Australia would continue to govern the circumvention of geoblocking technology. Geoblocking also spans a wide variety of technologies, some of which may and some of which may not, be captured by the TPM regime in the Copyright Act.
The Government supports a review of the voluntary code for collecting societies to ensure it remains the best mechanism to promote efficient, effective and transparent administration of copyright licences. The Government considers the Department of the Communications and the Arts is best placed to undertake such a review, in close consultation with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The Department of Communications and the Arts will also continue to consider the efficiency and effectiveness of statutory licences for educational and government use of copyright material and how collecting societies administer these licences.
Australia’s current exceptions for fair dealing are restrictive when compared with international counterparts and may not permit some reasonable fair uses of copyright material. The Government will publicly consult on more flexible copyright exceptions. Consultation will occur in early 2018 following the finalisation of other copyright reform priorities, such as the Government’s review of the Copyright Regulations, and the Collecting Societies’ Voluntary Code of Conduct.
The Government supports recommendation (a) to reduce the grace period for challenging non-use of a trade mark. The Government does not support recommendation (b) to remove the presumption of registrability in assessing whether a trade mark could be misleading or confusing. The Government supports recommendation (c) to ensure that parallel imports of marked goods do not infringe an Australian registered trade mark when the good has been brought to market elsewhere by the owner or licensee.
The Government supports in principle recommendation (d) to require a statement of ‘using’ or ‘intending to use’ a mark at application, registration and renewal. The Government supports recommendation (e) to routinely challenge trade mark applications that contain contemporary geographical references, but some further work is needed to determine the scope of the practice change in the Trade Marks Office. The Government agrees that geographical terms in trade marks are a particularly contentious issue in relation to misleading and confusing connotations.