The Songwriters Association of Canada’s Treasurer Martine Groulx and President Arun Chaturvedi recently met with members of the Bloc Québécois to advocate for stronger protections for songwriters and rights holders.

During discussions with Members of Parliament Martin Champoux and Jean-Denis Garon (Vice-Chair, Standing Committee on Industry and Technology), the S.A.C. highlighted the urgent need to safeguard creators’ works and to ensure fair compensation for the unauthorized use of their intellectual property by generative artificial intelligence systems. S.A.C. also highlighted the role of Bill C-27 in requiring tech companies to maintain transparency about the data used to train these systems.

The S.A.C. reiterated its strong support for the principles outlined by the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, including expanding the definition of harm, respecting copyright, and ensuring transparency through detailed record-keeping by tech companies.

It was reassuring to hear of the Bloc’s commitment to supporting cultural industries in addressing these challenges, regulating generative AI systems, and enforcing the Copyright Act and intellectual property rights.

The S.A.C. thanks Mr. Champoux and Mr. Garon for their time and their engagement on these critical issues.