Some Quebec music stores could be forced to close because of a language law

The Quebec government have always been hardasses when it comes to protecting and promoting the French language. It’s also true that some of the rules they put in place and enforce are onerous and dumb.

Bill 96 is a proposed new law that will require French language labels on all products and all documents that come with them. That means manuals and warranties. Music stores in the province are very concerned about this.

The CBC took a look at this. Steve Long of Long and McQuade was clear: “If you follow the letter of the law, there won’t be any music stores in Quebec.”

Diving into Bill 96, Article 51 is the big problem. It reads “Every inscription on a product, on its container or on its wrapping, or on a document or object supplied with it, including the directions for use and the warranty certificates, must be drafted in French.”

Okay, so what? Don’t we already find such documentation in things we buy today? Most musical instruments are imported, and English is the industry standard for packaging and documentation.

Almost none–including some products from France–only come with English labeling and documentation. The only option is to print custom labels and docs for every product in a Quebec music store. And with inventories of thousands of items, it’s impossible. No one has the time and budget to do this. And because the Quebec market is just a spec when it comes to the global musical instrument universe, manufacturers aren’t going to help out.

The government has been advised of the situation and has so far proved inflexible.

Here’s the full CBC report (via Sean). You can see the problem.