(Ottawa) No new books or plays will be added to the public domain until 2043 in Canada, as the federal government extended the term of copyright protection by 20 years just before the end of 2022.
Until December 30, copyright protection for original works of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic nature applied for the life of the artist, plus 50 years after his death.
However, since this date, the new regulations apply for the life of the artist and 70 years after his death.
This change allows Canada to respect a commitment made under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement and ensures that the same rule will be applied in Canada as in the United States, where the period of 70 years after death of the artist has been in force since 1998.
This means that artistic works that may have been republished or reused without permission since 1er January will benefit from an additional protection of 20 years.
For example, copyright protection for some of the writings of former Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, who died in December 1972, will not expire until December 1er January 2043.