2021-2022 - Departmental Plan

From the Minister

The Copyright Board of Canada and Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) are working to position Canada as an innovation leader on the global stage by fostering a diverse, growing, competitive and sustainable economy that benefits all Canadians.

While our government’s priority continues to be fighting COVID-19 and protecting Canadians’ health and safety, we are committed to fostering conditions for investment, enhancing Canadian innovation, and driving growth in key sectors. Together, we will strengthen the Canadian economy and restore consumer confidence through strategic actions, including investing in training for workers, and supporting Canadian businesses as they adapt and grow in a knowledge-based economy.

Copyright, like all other forms of intellectual property, is essential to innovation and a thriving marketplace. The global health crisis and an enhanced focus on innovation, diversity and inclusion has transformed our daily lives, including the way we do business. In this context, the Copyright Board of Canada is key to ensuring an efficient creative marketplace that promotes competition, job creation and consumer choice.

In 2021-22, the Copyright Board of Canada will continue to deliver on its mandate as set out in the Copyright Act: considering and rendering decisions on tariffs of general application and issuing licences where parties cannot agree, or when the owner of the work cannot be found. Building on its accomplishments of the past year, the Copyright Board of Canada will also promote the timeliness, predictability and transparency of its activities by establishing clear rules of procedure through regulation, the development of new tools, and putting in place measures to improve access to justice.

These actions will ensure that the Copyright Board of Canada, as an economic regulator and an independent administrative tribunal, continues to play a vital role in supporting a robust and dynamic creative marketplace.

Together with Canadians of all backgrounds, regions and generations, we are building a strong culture of innovation to position Canada as a leader in the global economy. For more information, it is my pleasure to present the 2021-22 Departmental Plan for the Copyright Board of Canada.

François-Philippe Champagne

The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne
Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry

Plans at a glance

As an economic regulator, an independent administrative tribunal and a key institution of Canada’s intellectual property ecosystem, the Copyright Board of Canada’s (the Board) role is to establish fair and equitable tariffs and licences for the use of collectively managed, copyright-protected content as articulated in the Copyright Act (the Act). This mandate has been enhanced over the past two years through changes brought about by the Government of Canada to the Board’s legislative framework. This framework sets out new rules of engagement, confirms the Board’s decision-making parameters, and promotes the informal and expeditious treatment of cases.

Fiscal year 2019–20 was a year of transition for the Board, with the launch of an in-depth review and of the modernization of its entire suite of internal administrative processes. Fiscal year 2020–21 focused on the consolidation of the Board’s modernization efforts in implementing a more streamlined and clear operational structure for tariff-setting and licensing; establishing new processes to better support Board Members in their decision-making responsibilities; and in developing and publishing new tools. The Board also launched a more comprehensive and user-friendly website to better inform stakeholders about Board activities and enhance overall transparency.

With the swift onset of the global COVID-19 health crisis in the spring of 2020-21, the Board had to quickly pivot to working remotely while ensuring continuity of service for Parties and the general public and maintaining general operations. The Board was well positioned to adapt to this new reality, having already taken steps to better define and streamline its work processes, including establishing a remote working protocol. Mindful that many of its stakeholders were dramatically affected by the COVID-19 crisis, the Board showed flexibility to accommodate Parties when needed and suspended immediate plans for face-to-face engagement, while continuing to move forward on its proceedings and other internal projects.

In fiscal year 2021-22, the Board will continue the consolidation of its modernization efforts by further integrating efficiency and transparency as core values within its organizational culture. It will pursue the implementation of its new legislative and regulatory framework by publishing its own set of regulations to further improve the timeliness, predictability, and clarity of its proceedings and reduce overall burden and costs for all Parties. It will also put in place resources to guide Parties as they navigate their new regulatory obligations, and continue its work toward the launch of an e-filing system by 2023.

The Board reiterates its 2020-21 commitment toward engaging representatives from the legal, academic, regulatory, and administrative tribunal communities to inform the development of new and more effective procedural initiatives. This will serve as a first step towards a broader engagement of collective societies and users on issues of relevance to a forward-looking Board, such as transparency of collective rights management through tariff-setting processes, as suggested by the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology in its Statutory Review of the Copyright Act. (Recommendation 35)i

In 2021-22, the Board will continue to document and report on the results of its transformation, and develop a new performance reporting framework better adapted to its new reality and the expectations of the community of creators and users it serves.

The Board is deeply committed to promoting diversity and nurturing inclusion in all aspects of its operations. For this reason, the Board joined the 50-30 Challenge in 2020-21, an initiative between the Government of Canada, businesses and diversity organizations to challenge Canadian organizations to increase the representation and inclusion of diverse groups within their workplace, while highlighting the benefits of giving all Canadians a seat at the table. Honouring its diversity and inclusion commitments under the 50-30 Challenge will be a key priority for the Board in 2021-22.

The Board’s greatest strength lies in the expertise of its employees, predominantly in copyright law and copyright economics. As the Board continues on its path to a more efficient, accessible and digitally-based organization, it requires other skills in leadership, information management, digital transformation and innovation. In 2021 22, the Board will set out a strategic human resources plan to maintain its specialised in-house proficiency while building networks and partnerships with a broad and diverse range of experts and innovators in government and academic communities, and to support the development and recruitment of new skills and expertise.

For more information on the Copyright Board of Canada’s plans, priorities and planned results, see the “Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks” section of this report.

Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks

This section contains detailed information on the department’s planned results and resources for each of its core responsibilities. It also contains information on key risks related to achieving those results.

Copyright Tariffs and Licences

Description

The Copyright Board of Canada establishes the tariffs which set the royalties to be paid for the use of copyrighted works, when the copyright on such works are being administered collectively by a society. The Board also issues licences which set the royalties to be paid for the use of copyrighted works when the copyright owner cannot be located. By issuing fair and equitable tariffs and licences in a timely manner, the Board encourages the development and adoption of new technologies and stimulates innovation in the Canadian creative economy. Its work also promotes confidence in Canada’s tariff and licencing processes.

Planning highlights

The recent changes to the Act, the new Government regulations that came into effect on December 4, 2020, and the upcoming Board regulations to be introduced in 2021 22, will create a framework intended to improve the timeliness, predictability, and clarity of its proceedings and decisions. In 2021-22, the Board will pursue the consolidation of its modernization efforts in order to achieve these objectives, including through more efficient operations and the publication of new tools and guidelines for Parties in light of the new regulations.

The Board’s ability to succeed within this new legislative and regulatory framework rests on its agility, adaptability and resilience as an organization, but also on its deep understanding of copyright-related issues in the broader context of the creative marketplace. Because it deals with extremely complex subject-matter which continuously morphs and shape-shifts as technologies and the copyright ecosystem evolve, the Board will continue to keep abreast of and be well versed in a multitude of fields such as conventional broadcasting and internet streaming, in addition to domestic and international developments in copyright and administrative law. It will do so by attending specialized conferences and seminars and nurturing collaborative and information-sharing partnerships with organizations such as the Departments of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Canadian Heritage, the Competition Bureau, the CRTC, and Statistics Canada, among others.

In 2021-2022, the Board will also pursue the transformation of its internal information and data management infrastructure and practices. The work will support the Board’s stated goal to launch an e-filing system by 2023 and help foster alignment of Board operations with the new Government of Canada Policy on Service and Digitalii .

Developing a new, relevant performance measurement framework for the Board will continue to be a priority in 2021-2022. Work that began in 2020-21 to review and assess current indicators in light of the modernized legislative framework was delayed in part because of the Board having to redirect its attention and scarce planning resources to other matters, including managing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its operations and staff. In 2021-22, the Board will document the transformation of its practices and processes and lessons learned, evaluate its progress and impact on operations. In turn, this will inform the development of more robust performance measurement indicators. The Board will also pursue new sources for data and measurement information. Until a new performance measurement framework is ready to be implemented, the Board will continue to monitor and report on its existing performance indicators.

Experimentation

Experimentation is at the core of the Board’s modernisation efforts. Its user-centered design approach to change, with rapid iterations and testing of new methods, allows the Board to address issues as they emerge. In 2021-2022, the Board will apply lessons learned through the COVID 19 pandemic to accelerate the development of an e-filing system and other digital tools and resources.

Key risk(s)

As the Board continues to reshape and restructure itself at an organizational level, the ecosystem within which it operates is also in flux as a result of new technologies emerging, international agreements being signed, and Canadian court decisions setting new standards or new interpretations of the law, among other developments. This is further complicated by the scarcity of data about the creative marketplace available to the Board. This everchanging environment and the limited access to key data can impact the Board’s ability to deliver on its renewed mandate, as directed by Parliament in 2019. It can also affect the quality of the Board’s decisions, its capacity to measure performance, and its ability to effectively play its role of economic regulator and expert independent administrative tribunal. In 2021-2022, the Board will seek out opportunities for deepening its expertise of the creative marketplace by exploring new data sources, including through collaboration with other governmental organisations.

Finally, as a micro-organization, the Board’s existing human resources capacity has been stretched considerably over the past two years in order to pursue modernization efforts, maintain its critical expertise, reduce a significant backlog, and deliver on various reporting requirements. The risk of “change fatigue” is very high, exacerbated by the current global health situation. In 2021-2022, the Board will continue to engage its employees on issues of personal and interpersonal mental health and well-being, including through its Wellness Committee, and pursue management-employee dialogue on the workplace of the future. The Board will also explore options to address the challenge of recruiting new types of skills by broadening the competency profile of its current staff and exploiting opportunities for leadership development as a means to engage new and diverse talent.

The Board will also continue to engage its federal networks, including through the Heads of Federal Agencies community, to find better reporting practices for very small government organisations.

Planned results for Copyright Tariffs and Licences
Departmental results Departmental result indicator Target Date to achieve target 2017-18 actual results 2018-19 actual results 2019-20 actual results
Timely tariff decisions Percentage of tariff decisions published within 12 months 70% March 31, 2022 93% 100% 100%
Timely issuance of licences Percentage of licences issued within 45 days 70% March 31, 2022 0% 50% 100%

The actual results of both indicators can vary substantially from year to year depending on the number and complexity of the decisions, which are also highly variable.

Financial, human resources and performance information for the Copyright Board of Canada’s program inventory is available in the GC InfoBase.iii

 
Planned budgetary financial resources for Copyright Tariffs and Licences (dollars)
2021-22
budgetary spending (as indicated in Main Estimates)
2021-22
planned spending
2022-23
planned spending
2023-24
planned spending
3,423,846 3,423,846 3,425,231 3,425,231
 
Planned human resources for Copyright Tariffs and Licences
2021-22
planned full-time equivalents
2022-23
planned full-time equivalents
2023-24
planned full-time equivalents
21 21 21
 

Financial, human resources and performance information for the Copyright Board of Canada’s program inventory is available in the GC InfoBaseiv.

Internal Services: planned results

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of Programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct services that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. These services are:

  • Management and Oversight Services
  • Communications Services
  • Legal Services
  • Human Resources Management Services
  • Financial Management Services
  • Information Management Services
  • Information Technology Services
  • Real Property Management Services
  • Materiel Management Services
  • Acquisition Management Services

Planning highlights

The Board receives timely support from internal services, namely: finance; human resources; communications; information management and information technology. This activity is critical in supporting the realisation of the Board’s mandate and objectives, given its small size and high level of specialization.

As a micro-organization, the Board’s internal services are supplemented by service agreements with some larger Departments, including Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) and Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC). In 2021-22, the Board will review and renew these agreements to ensure they continue to meet our needs and are better aligned with broader Government of Canada policies and practices, including the new Policy on Service and Digitalv.

The COVID-19 global pandemic accelerated the Board’s plans regarding the digitization of its operations. In 2021-22, the Board will continue the modernization of its internal digital infrastructure, and its information and data management practices, with a view to launch an e-filing system by 2023.

The Board adheres to the principles of the FSDS and is doing its part to support Canada’s transition to low-carbon, climate resilient and green operations. During this time of major internal changes, all operations are being reviewed to ensure they support the goal of reducing the Board’s ecological footprint. For example, the Board has taken the initiative of reducing the number of personal printers, using recycled paper and duplex printing default settings and encouraging the use of tablets for notetaking during meetings. By the end of fiscal year 2022-2023, our target is to implement an electronic filing system (e-filing) which will help both the Parties and the Board reduce significantly their use of paper.

Planned budgetary financial resources for Internal Services (dollars)
2021-22
budgetary spending (as indicated in Main Estimates)
2021-22
planned spending
2022-23
planned spending
2023-24
planned spending
855,961 855,961 856,308 856,308
 
Planned human resources for Internal Services
2021-22
planned full-time equivalents
2022-23
planned full-time equivalents
2023-24
planned full-time equivalents
4 4 4
 

Spending and human resources

This section provides an overview of the Board’s planned spending and human resources for the next three consecutive fiscal years and compares planned spending for the upcoming year with the current and previous years’ actual spending.

Planned spending

Departmental spending 2018–19 to 2023–24

The following graph presents planned (voted and statutory) spending over time.

Departmental spending 2018–19 to 2023–24

Overall (voted and statutory), the Board’s planned spending for 2021-22 shows a net increase of over 500,000$ from 2018-19, which reflects the additional financial resources provided to the Board in the 2018 Federal budget and on an ongoing basis.

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned spending for each of the Copyright Board of Canada’s core responsibilities and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year.

Budgetary planning summary for core responsibilities and Internal Services (dollars)
Core Responsibilities and Internal Services 2018-19
expenditures
2019-20
expenditures
2020-21
forecast spending
2021-22
budgetary spending (as indicated in Main Estimates
2021-22
planned spending
2022-23
planned spending
2023-24
planned spending
Copyright Tariffs and Licences 3,024,214 3,297,974 3,422,791 3,423,846 3,423,846 3,425,231 3,425,231
Subtotal 3,024,214 3,297,974 3,422,791 3,423,846 3,423,846 3,425,231 3,425,231
Internal Services 709,384 772,056 802,877 855,961 855,961 856,308 856,308
Total 3,733,598 4,070,030 4,225,668 4,279,807 4,279,807 4,281,539 4,281,539
 

The Board funding was increased in Budget 2018, on an ongoing basis, to support increased administrative, legal and analytic capacity and allow for more efficient decision-making. While the majority of the funds are dedicated to core activities, planned spending for internal services is expected to increase to support the work required to modernize its operations, including the eventual development of an e-tribunal.

In 2021-2022 specifically, the Board is forecasting higher levels of spending to support anticipated changes to its workplace in the wake of the global pandemic for the safety and productivity of its staff, and to advance the redesign of its information management and technology activities, including development and early testing of an e-filing system.

 

Planned human resources

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned full-time equivalents (FTEs) for each core responsibility in the Board’s departmental results framework and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year.

Human resources planning summary for core responsibilities and Internal Services
Core Responsibilities and Internal Services 2018-19
actual full-time equivalents
2019-20
actual full-time equivalents
2020-21
forecast full-time equivalents
2021-22
planned full-time equivalents
2022-23
planned full-time equivalents
2023-24
planned full-time equivalents
Copyright Tariff Setting and Licences 16 20 21 21 21 21
Subtotal 16 20 21 21 21 21
Internal Services 2 3 4 4 4 4
Total 18 23 25 25 25 25
 

The Board increased its human resources in 2019-20, aligned with its increased financial resources to operationalize new requirements adopted by Parliament in 2019. The FTE forecast in the longer-term will be more predictable once the Board has completed its organizational transformation and stabilized its operations. An additional FTE has been included in internal services in anticipation of its needs to build and maintain an e-filing system.

Estimates by vote

Information on the Board’s organizational appropriations is available in the 2021–22 Main Estimates.vi

Future-oriented Condensed statement of operations

The future oriented condensed statement of operations provides an overview of the Copyright Board of Canada’s operations for 2020–21 to 2021–22.

The amounts for forecast and planned results in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The amounts for forecast and planned spending presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

A more detailed future oriented statement of operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the Board’s website.

Future oriented Condensed statement of operations for the year ending March 31, 2022 (dollars)
Financial information 2020-21
forecast results
2021-22
planned results
Difference (2021–22 planned results minus 2020–21 forecast results)
Total expenses 4,748,266 4,805,600 57,334
Total revenues - - -
Net cost of operations before government funding and transfers 4,748,266 4,805,600 57,334
 

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister(s):

The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, P.C, M.P.
Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry

Institutional head:

Nathalie Théberge

Ministerial portfolio:

Innovation, Science and Economic Development

Enabling instrument(s):

Copyright Actvii

Year of incorporation / commencement:

1989

Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

“Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do” is available on the Copyright Board of Canada’s websiteviii.

For more information on the department’s organizational mandate letter commitments, see the “Minister’s mandate letterix”.

Operating context

Information on the operating context is available on the Copyright Board of Canada’s websitex.

Reporting framework

The Board’s approved departmental results framework and program inventory for 2021–22 are as follows.

Departmental Results Framework Core Responsibility: Copyright Tariffs and Licences Internal Services
Department Result 1:
Timely Tariff Decisions
Indicator:
Percentage of tariff decisions published within 12 months
Department Result 2:
Timely Issuance of Licences
Indicator:
Percentage of licences issued within 45 days
Program Inventory Program:
Copyright Tariff Setting and Issuance of Licences
 

Supporting information on the Program Inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the Copyright Board of Canada’s program inventory is available in the GC InfoBase xi.

Federal tax expenditures

The Copyright Board of Canada’s Departmental Plan does not include information on tax expenditures that relate to its planned results for 2021–22.

Tax expenditures are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance, and the Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for government¬ wide tax expenditures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expendituresxii. This report provides detailed information on tax expenditures, including objectives, historical background and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis. The tax measures presented in this report are solely the responsibility of the Minister of Finance

Organizational contact information

Mailing address

Copyright Board of Canada
Suite 800 - 56 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0C9
Telephone : 613.952.8621
E-mail : secretariat@cb-cda.gc.ca
Website(s) : https://cb-cda.gc.ca/enxiii

Appendix: definitions

appropriation (crédit) Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

core responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a core responsibility are reflected in one or more related departmental results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)A report on the plans and expected performance of a department over a 3 year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

departmental priority (priorité ministérielle) A plan or project that a department has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Departmental priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired departmental results.

departmental result (résultat ministériel) A consequence or outcome that a department seeks to achieve. A departmental result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

departmental result indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel) A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a departmental result.

departmental results framework (cadre ministériel des résultats) A framework that consists of the department’s core responsibilities, departmental results and departmental result indicators.

Departmental Results Report (Rapport sur les résultats ministériels) A report on a department’s actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

experimentation (expérimentation )The conducting of activities that seek to first explore, then test and compare, the effects and impacts of policies and interventions in order to inform evidence-based decision-making, and improve outcomes for Canadians, by learning what works and what doesn’t. Experimentation is related to, but distinct form innovation (the trying of new things), because it involves a rigorous comparison of results. For example, using a new website to communicate with Canadians can be an innovation; systematically testing the new website against existing outreach tools or an old website to see which one leads to more engagement, is experimentation.

full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person year charge against a departmental budget. Full time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS+])An analytical process used to assess how diverse groups of women, men and gender-diverse people experience policies, programs and services based on multiple factors including race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales) For the purpose of the 2021–22 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2020 Speech from the Throne, namely: Protecting Canadians from COVID-19; Helping Canadians through the pandemic; Building back better – a resiliency agenda for the middle class; The Canada we’re fighting for.

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale) An initiative in which two or more federal organizations are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

non-budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires) Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement) What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

Performance indicator (indicateur de rendement) A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

Performance reporting (production de rapports sur le rendement) The process of communicating evidence based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision-making, accountability and transparency.

plan (plan) The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

planned spending (dépenses prévues) For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in the Main Estimates.
A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

Program (programme) Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

Program Inventory (répertoire des programmes) Identifies all of the department’s programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department’s core responsibilities and results.

results (résultat): An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization’s influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives): Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

strategic outcome (résultat stratégique): A long-term and enduring benefit to Canadians that is linked to the organization’s mandate, vision and core functions.

target (cible): A measurable performance or success level that an organization, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées): Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.