ausfta

Copyright Future – Dinner Address

Copyright Future: Copyright Freedom
Conference
27-28 March 2009
Old Parliament House Canberra
Dinner Presentation
I’d like to begin tonight by illustrating the beauty of open access to intellectual property. I am going to borrow a thought from Lawrence Lessig, who in turn is borrowing from someone else. I thinks it contextualises my comments.
Lawrence wrote this of the US Republican Party [...]

Software Freedom Day 2006

SFD Conference
University of NSW, Sydney
Thank you for having me here today to speak and celebrate international software freedom day! I want to give you an insight into how federal politics and policies impact upon Free and Open Source Software in Australia.
There are three main areas of effect:

Firstly, the Commonwealth Government as procurer, user and consumer [...]

Open Standards and AUSFTA

Labor moves on Open Standards and Open Source Software for Government IT
And
Comments on Intellectual Property & the FTA
AUUG 2004 Conference
Melbourne
1 September 2004
The Labor Party has been vocal and active in promoting Open Source Software for use in the Federal Government Agencies and Departments. I have made many statements supporting Open Source and believe that Open [...]

Impact of the FTA

Review of Draft Free Trade Agreement by Senator Kate Lundy
Open Source Special Interest Group
Sydney
20 May 2004
Australia’s Cultural Identity and Intellectual Property under the proposed FTA
or “Sugar, Sheep and Shibboleths”
Why Howard’s deal with the US sells out our unique strengths.
In the opening pages of Neal Stephenson’s ode to the future, Snow Crash, [...]

Cultural Content and the AUSFTA

Cultural Content and the proposed Australia/US Free Trade Agreement
Adjournment Speech
SENATE
13 May 2004 (9.20 p.m.)

I rise in the chamber this evening to highlight some major concerns relating to the Cultural Sector and the Australia – United States Free Trade Agreement.
Labor argued strongly for an exclusion clause for the cultural/audiovisual sector in the lead up negotiations to [...]

Connecting Australia

Connecting Up Conference
Keynote address
Adelaide
4 May 2004
It’s about people, not technology
It makes perfect sense that the current technological revolution is the mere beginning of a far reaching period of social change. Information and Communication Technology represents one of the most critical forms of social, cultural and economic empowerment.
How effectively modern, democratic governments manage [...]

Minister must fix regional performing arts mess

Arts Minister, Senator Rod Kemp today refused to explain why hundreds of thousands of regional people have had their access to the arts unjustifiably cut under the latest round of Playing Australia grants.
The Howard Government is blatantly discriminating against regional centres, with funded productions reduced from 26 down to 13, with nearly 50 regional centres [...]

AUSFTA may be final curtain call for Film Industry

The Howard Government was quick to talk up its commitment to the Australian film and television industry in the House of Representatives today. The reality is that the Howard Government is guilty of having created a crisis in the industry after cutting more than $100 million in funding in just five years between 1996 and [...]

Australian Artists deserve more than poverty

A third of practising Australian Artists are living in poverty, with visual artists and females the most financially disadvantaged, validating Labor’s commitment to introduce a resale royalty scheme for visual artists.
A report released this week titled Don’t Give Up Your Day Job surveyed 1063 professionals revealing that 50% of artists earn less than $7,300 from [...]

Red alert for new media industry

Trade Minister Mark Vaile made it clear this morning that he is willing to put the future of Australia’s cultural industries in the hands of the United States through the AUSFTA.
The concessions flagged by the Howard Government regarding new media and new types of digital media represent the surrendering of future Australian local content rules.
We [...]