Whisper
February 23rd, 2008, 02:52 PM
The Songwriters Association of Canada (SAC) this week continued a lobbying effort that seeks to have the federal government impose a tax on Canadians that could raise over $1.5 billion dollars a year.
The industry trade group which is funded by the government of Canada though the Canada music fund and Canadian Heritage would have the government raise the money by applying a $5 a month tax on every internet and wireless account in Canada.
The Canadian wireless and Telecommunications Association reports there were 19.3 million wireless phone subscribers in Canada. Digital Home estimates that the number of internet accounts is over 6 million meaning the total number of wireless and internet accounts in Canada is over 25 million.
At five dollars per month, the proposed tax could conceivably raise over $125 million dollars a month or $1.5 billion dollars annually. SAC says the tax is necessary because the Internet and mobile phone networks have become major sources of illegally downloaded music for which songwriters and performers receive little or no compensation.
The amount being demanded is staggering when you consider that $1.5 billion annually dwarfs the actual financial impact of music downloading. According to the CRIA, total Canadian CD sales fell from about $700 in 1999 to $560 million in 2004. If we make the assumption that all of that decline is attributable to music downloading (which many critics dispute) the total economic damage is under $150 million annually or less than 10% of what SAC is asking!
In addition to demanding that the Canadian Heritage raise $1.5 billion a year on their behalf, the group is also proposing the federal government make an amendment to the Copyright Act that would make it legal for Canadians to download and share any music file regardless of its origin.
In simple terms the group is lobbying the government to abolish illegal file sharing in exchange for its members receiving $1.5 billion dollars in tax revenues.
Among the groups supporters are the Canadian Music Creators Coalition (CMCC) and noted Canadian musician Randy Bachman.
Canadians wanting to let their voices be known on the issue can contact Canadian Heritage at 1 866-811-0055 or by email at [email protected] e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Learn more about the SAC proposal at the trade groups website at http://songwriters.ca/
The industry trade group which is funded by the government of Canada though the Canada music fund and Canadian Heritage would have the government raise the money by applying a $5 a month tax on every internet and wireless account in Canada.
The Canadian wireless and Telecommunications Association reports there were 19.3 million wireless phone subscribers in Canada. Digital Home estimates that the number of internet accounts is over 6 million meaning the total number of wireless and internet accounts in Canada is over 25 million.
At five dollars per month, the proposed tax could conceivably raise over $125 million dollars a month or $1.5 billion dollars annually. SAC says the tax is necessary because the Internet and mobile phone networks have become major sources of illegally downloaded music for which songwriters and performers receive little or no compensation.
The amount being demanded is staggering when you consider that $1.5 billion annually dwarfs the actual financial impact of music downloading. According to the CRIA, total Canadian CD sales fell from about $700 in 1999 to $560 million in 2004. If we make the assumption that all of that decline is attributable to music downloading (which many critics dispute) the total economic damage is under $150 million annually or less than 10% of what SAC is asking!
In addition to demanding that the Canadian Heritage raise $1.5 billion a year on their behalf, the group is also proposing the federal government make an amendment to the Copyright Act that would make it legal for Canadians to download and share any music file regardless of its origin.
In simple terms the group is lobbying the government to abolish illegal file sharing in exchange for its members receiving $1.5 billion dollars in tax revenues.
Among the groups supporters are the Canadian Music Creators Coalition (CMCC) and noted Canadian musician Randy Bachman.
Canadians wanting to let their voices be known on the issue can contact Canadian Heritage at 1 866-811-0055 or by email at [email protected] e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Learn more about the SAC proposal at the trade groups website at http://songwriters.ca/