There's an interesting debate going on in Canada. It revolves around whether the MP3 player device category (e.g. iPod) is a contributory infringement device.

The concrete manifestation of this is a fee (levy) set by the Canadian Copyright Board (CPCC - Canadian Private Copying Collective) on iPods. The assertion is that buyers of the device ought to compensate creators (nominally musicians but actually the copyright-holding Cartel). This assertion was disputed by the Appeal Court, which ruled that the Copyright Board did not have jurisdiction. The point at issue seemed to be that the levy is on the memory of the iPod and the assertion that the Copyright Board doesn't have the authority to tax a permanently embedded bit of hardware.

The ruling came down mid-December and the CPCC has now announced they would appeal to the Canadian Supreme Court.

The problem is that the issue may turn on this silly technicality of fixed memory instead of the deeper issue of whether the iPod is a contributory infringement device whose use requires compensation. I would assert that THAT is equally silly, but I'm afraid the court won't rule on the issue.