The James H. Bocking Memorial Award was established by the Canadian Bar Association’s Competition Law and Foreign Investment Review Section in memory of the late James H. Bocking, former Assistant Deputy Director of Investigation and Research at the Competition Bureau, to recognize his contribution to Canadian competition law and policy during many years as an official of the Bureau. The award is presented annually for the best scholarly paper submitted on a subject directly relating to Canadian competition law or policy.
Mark Musselman’s paper, “Cultivating Change: How Canada’s Competition Act Can Address the Use of Technological Protection Measures in Agriculture,” explores the impact of Technological Protection Measures (TPM) in the Canadian agricultural equipment manufacturing industry. He discusses how TPMs, increasingly employed by full-line manufacturers of agricultural machinery such as tractors and combines, create barriers for short-line manufacturers, whose equipment depends on compatibility with full-line products.
As agriculture moves toward digital technologies and “smart farming,” TPMs are restricting access to critical data needed by short-line manufacturers, threatening their competitiveness. Mark Musselman argues that changes to copyright law alone may not solve this issue and suggests using competition law to challenge anti-competitive practices like exclusive dealing and tied selling by full-line manufacturers. His paper proposes that applying competition law could provide the short-line sector with greater opportunities for relief through proceedings at the Competition Tribunal.
Mark Musselman’s insightful research brings a fresh perspective to the intersection of competition law and technological innovation in agriculture.
Congratulations for this well-deserved recognition!