Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would like to say at the outset that I welcome your opening remarks. We in the Liberal Party also definitely want to proceed with haste on Bill C-32. It has been a long time coming. It is with some regret that we realize that our undertakings on WIPO go back to the previous century, if I can say that. So we definitely need to get on with this.
I also welcome your comments on achieving a balanced project here. We must try to achieve that, and hopefully we will demonstrate the wisdom of Solomon in coming up with a balance that will address not only the needs of our consumers, but also the needs of our artists and creators.
As you know from speaking to this in debate, we believe that a number of issues will need to be looked at in greater depth. I would like to start with one that deals with the question of digital locks.
At the moment, for products that do not have digital locks, the bill allows for the consumer to do some format shifting or time shifting, and this is welcomed. However, it is also clear that if there is a digital lock and a person infringes on that, they are breaking the law.
Minister Moore, I would like to ask you about a comment you made on Power & Politics on November 17. You said:
When I buy a movie, I've paid for the movie. To ask me to pay for it a second time through another device--and to assume that I'm doing illegal copying, to assume that I'm being a pirate, to assume that I'm thieving from people because I happen to own an MP3 player or a Blu-ray player or a laptop, I think treats consumers unfairly.
How do you reconcile that with the fact that you have also said that if you buy a product that is equipped with a digital lock, it would be against the law for you to infringe on that and put it on some other device for personal use?