LE MONDE (France), TORONTO STAR, RABBLE (Canada)
According to Canadian expert in copyright, Michael Geist, the European Commission is planning to implement the recently rejected provisions of ACTA with a clever little workaround: by applying the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
The Canadian publication Rabble reports that Canada and the European Union are trying to ratify the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement through the backdoor.
Michael Geist, who is also the Toronto Star“s Internet legal affairs columnist, stated: “The European Commission strategy appears to use CETA as the new ACTA, burying its provisions in a broader Canadian trade agreement with the hope that the European Parliament accepts the same provisions it just rejected with the ACTA framework.”
On his blog, Mr Geist presents the similarities between ACTA and CETA provisions, mainly concerning the Internet Provider Liability, the Civil and Criminal Enforcement, as well as the Border Measures.
French daily Le Monde points out that according to leaked documents from February 2012, the CETA agreement will oblige Internet providers to disclose the identity of their users suspected of piracy.
Dubbed “ACTA’s Trojan horse” by several European websites, CETA is currently in its last stage of negotiation.
As for the ACTA treaty, which the European MPs massively rejected in the voting session last week, it is to be examined by the European Court of Justice. ACTA could be re-examined by the EU Parliament, if the Court decides it respects fundamental rights.
In the meantime, reaction was fierce in Europe to reports of this Plan B for anti-piracy policy:
l’europe vous prend bien pour des cons #acta #ceta #globalchange #indect a faire circuler!! fb.me/1OtttjCTJ
— OccupyParis (@OccupyParis) Juillet 10, 2012
French Indignados’ reaction on CETA: “Europe thinks you are idiots’
#ACTA : avec #CETA Bruxelles tente de court-circuiter le rejet d’ACTA is.gd/lUnlH7vous avez dit démocratie européenne ????
— Christo MICHE (@Christo_MICHE) Juillet 10, 2012
“Brussels is trying to cancel the rejection of ACTA. Did you say European democracy???”
Au revoir #ACTA et bonjour #CETA ! C’est repartis pour une nouvelle lutte acharnée lemonde.fr/technologies/a…
— Tr!st@n(@TristanRobles) Juillet 10, 2012
“Goodbye ACTA, hello CETA; A new struggle begins.”