Canada Just Fixed Copyright Law for Repair

What do ice cream machines, Xboxes, and tractors have in common? Fixing them just became legal in Canada: They all have certain repairs that are blocked by software called technological protection measures. Until yesterday, you’d risk violating copyright law if you bypassed those software protections in Canada.

But now Canada’s new laws, Bills C-244 and C-294, are changing the game. These bills are a huge step forward for the right to repair, giving Canadians more freedom to repair their own devices without breaking the law. They make Canada the first country to tackle copyright law’s digital locks at a federal level in favor of repair access.

Canada’s new laws address something called technological protection measures (TPMs), or digital locks that prevent access to software on devices. Introduced into Canadian copyright law back in 2012, TPMs were initially meant to stop media piracy but quickly spread to hardware. Now, anything with embedded software—smart fridges, cars, medical equipment, farming equipment—can use TPMs to restrict third-party repair.

Bill C-244 allows consumers to bypass these digital locks for “repair, maintenance, and diagnosis” of their devices. Essentially, if your device is broken, you can work around TPMs to fix it. Meanwhile, C-294 focuses on “interoperability,” meaning you can circumvent locks if needed to get different devices to work together. For example, Canadian farmers can install third-party parts on their equipment without fear of triggering a software lock that keeps them dependent on costly repairs from the manufacturer.

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