Parking Lot

The votes were still being tallied in the federal action on Monday morning (April 29) when the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) sprang into action. The trade org issued a press release congratulating Mark Carney and the Liberal Party of Canada on their electoral victory while urging Carney to, in its words, "make the investment in and promotion of Canadian-owned cultural businesses a top priority."

The statement stressed that "The global cultural economy is changing rapidly, and with it come significant risks to Canada’s cultural and economic sovereignty. Recent developments — including TikTok’s decision to walk away from licensing negotiations with Merlin, a key representative of independent music worldwide; Universal Music Group’s acquisition of Downtown Music’s assets; and the legal challenge by global tech platforms, in partnership with foreign-owned multinational record companies, to avoid regulation under Bill C-11 — starkly illustrate the growing concentration of global corporate power in Canada’s cultural sector. If left unchecked, these trends threaten to erode Canadian ownership of intellectual property, diminish our global competitiveness, and compromise the future of Canadian cultural exports."

CIMA emphasizes four priorities for the most industry and suggests the government act quickly: