From: MadronaLabs@gmail.com   
      
   Media companies must back off from threatening Canadians who illegally   
   download movies, music and books with penalties that do not exist in   
   Canadian law, the government said on Friday.   
      
   "These notices are misleading and companies cannot use them to demand money   
   from Canadians," said Jake Enright, a spokesman for Industry Minister James   
   Moore.   
      
   Officials will be contacting Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and rights   
   holders within days to put an end to the practice, he said.   
      
   The issue surfaced on Thursday, when University of Ottawa law professor and   
   respected industry blogger Michael Geist posted a letter from a rights   
   holder that threatened civil liabilities of up to $150,000 per infringment.   
      
   Canadian law caps liability for non-commercial infringements by individuals   
   at $5,000.   
      
   Recent legal amendments require ISPs to pass on to their customers copyright   
   infringement notices from media companies.   
      
   The opposition New Democratic Party earlier on Friday urged the Conservative   
   government to close what they called a loophole.   
      
   "The Conservatives are letting these companies send false legal information   
   to Canadians in order to scare them into paying settlements for movies or   
   music no one has even proved they've actually downloaded," NDP Industry   
   Critic Peggy Nash said.   
      
   Geist said ISPs should reassure customers that their personal information   
   has not been disclosed and point out Canadian law on the issue.   
      
   He urged the government to penalize companies that send false information or   
   make "misleading settlement demands."   
      
   The letter posted by Geist, sent by Rightscorp Inc on behalf of music rights   
   manager BMG Rights Management to an unidentified Canadian ISP, also offered   
   a legal release from the copyright owner for $20 per infringement.   
      
   It is not clear how many of these letters have been sent out in Canada, or   
   how many people have opted to settle.   
      
   The Canadian lawyer retained by Rightscorp, Susan Abramovitch, did not   
   immediately respond to a request for comment.   
      
   Canada's biggest telecom company, BCE Inc, said it adds its own message to   
   the notices it is legally obliged to pass on, pointing out that it played no   
   part in identifying the possible unauthorized use of content.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)