Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008
in libraries and copyright.
The University of Michigan Library has decided to adopt Creative Common Attribution-Non-Commercial licenses for all works created by the library for which the school holds the copyright. These works include bibliographies, research guides, lesson plans, research studies, and technology tutorials. The license allows anyone to copy, distribute, display, or perform a work or derivative works based on it, as long as the user gives proper attribution to the University of Michigan Library and the use is noncommercial….
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Published by rwatstein October 19th, 2008
in government, politics and copyright.
It might go something like this: the President arrives at the Oval Office, first getting his daily threat briefing from the CIA director. Next up, his Copyright Czar arrives, to update the leader of the free world on the threat posed by—college kids illegally downloading the new Kanye West single? Okay, perhaps that isn’t exactly how things will work out. Nevertheless, major copyright owners got a big boost this week as President Bush signed into law the controversial PRO IP Act, which, in addition to dramatically raising penalties for copyright infringement, creates a new, cabinet-level IP enforcement czar. In a statement, Bush suggested the bill made us all safer. “Terrorist networks use counterfeit sales to finance their operations,” he noted.
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Published by rwatstein October 12th, 2008
in books, copyright and ARL.
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) this week posted a thought-provoking paper by lawyer Jonathan Band lauding the recent decision in the high-profile “Harry Potter” case. Although J. K. Rowling prevailed in the litigation, Band writes, “the big winner actually was fair use.”
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Published by rwatstein September 14th, 2008
in books and copyright.
J.K. Rowling has emerged triumphant in her copyright suit to squash the publication of Steven Vander Ark’s The Harry Potter Lexicon (RDR Books). U.S. District Judge Robert P. Patterson permanently blocked the release of the book in its current form, saying it would cause Rowling irreparable harm as a writer. He also awarded Rowling and co-plaintiff Warner Bros. $6,750 in statutory damages. Undaunted, Vander Ark next month is releasing In Search of Harry Potter, a travelogue based on Rowling’s series.
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Published by rwatstein August 31st, 2008
in OCLC and copyright.
OCLC is piloting a new service for libraries that encourages librarians and other interested parties to discover and share information about the copyright status of books. The WorldCat Copyright Evidence Registry is a community working together to build a union catalog of copyright evidence based on WorldCat, which contains more than 100 million bibliographic records describing items held in thousands of libraries worldwide. In addition to the WorldCat metadata, the Copyright Evidence Registry uses other data contributed by libraries and other organizations.
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Published by rwatstein August 31st, 2008
in copyright.
As Mickey Mouse turns 80 this fall, the most beloved rodent in show business is widely regarded as a national treasure. Acts of Congress have extended Disney’s copyright so long that they provoked a Supreme Court challenge, making Mickey the ultimate symbol of intellectual property. But then a grumpy former employee looked closely at fine print long forgotten in company archives: Film credits from the 1920s reveal imprecision in copyright claims that some experts say could invalidate Disney’s exclusive rights.
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Published by rwatstein July 19th, 2008
in copyright.
The Office for Information Technology Policy is now offering a digital copyright slider to go alongside its physical one. Thanks to Michael Brewer, OITP Copyright Advisory Committee member and designer of both tools. Simply align the arrows by date of publication to determine a work’s copyright status and term
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Digital Copyright Slider here
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Published by rwatstein May 26th, 2008
in demographics, education and copyright.
A spike in notices of alleged copyright violations on campuses prompts speculation that record companies are targeting future, not actual, breaches.
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Published by rwatstein April 27th, 2008
in education and copyright.
University of Florida professor Michael Moulton thinks copyright law protects the lectures he gives to his students, and he’s headed to court to prove it. Moulton and his e-textbook publisher are suing Thomas Bean, who runs a company that repackages and sells student notes, arguing that the business is illegal since notes taken during college lectures violate the professor’s copyright.
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The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today announced the launch of a new, dynamic curriculum that inspires students to be creative and teaches them about the value of patents, trademarks, and copyrights, as well as the importance of respecting other’s intellectual property. The i-©®eaTM curriculum, developed by the USPTO in collaboration with i-SAFE—a leader in Internet safety education—is an interactive and age appropriate unit of instruction designed for upper-elementary, middle, and high school students. “If you own something that is valuable, you want to protect it. Since U.S. intellectual property today is worth more than $5 trillion, it is important that future inventors understand the process of protecting intellectual property, and that we instill an innovative spirit among students to keep the flow of innovation alive,” said Jon Dudas, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO.
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After nearly three years of intensive work, the independent Section 108 Study Group has issued its report and recommendations on exceptions to copyright law to address how libraries, archives and museums deal with copyrighted materials in fulfilling their missions in the digital environment
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Published by rwatstein April 6th, 2008
in copyright.
This compact Copyright Slider, created by the Office for Information Technology Policy, provides instant access to copyright laws and guidelines. Simply align the arrows by date of publication to determine a work’s copyright status and term. And the “Permission needed?” box provides a quick answer to this very important question. This is a useful tool for librarians, teachers, artists, students, researchers, attorneys, or anyone who needs clear, concise information on copyright terms and conditions
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Published by rwatstein March 16th, 2008
in copyright and journals.
MIT OpenCourseWare (OCW), an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and STM publisher Elsevier have agreed to make available figures and text selections from any of the latter’s over 2,000 journal titles for use on OCW. Under the deal, select Elsevier content can now be included within the open access OCW course materials - to be freely downloaded, used and shared under a Creative Commons license.
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Non-profit copyright licensing solutions provider Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) has announced that it is expanding the availability of its Annual Copyright License for academic institutions to colleges and universities of all sizes. The move follows the strong initial reception to the licensing programme, launched in June 2007. Since then, 18 colleges and universities have purchased the licence.
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Published by rwatstein February 5th, 2008
in digital, copyright, publishing and authors.
Scores of writers are refusing to let their works be scanned for an online archive at the National Library of Wales because they are not being paid. A year after a near-ВЈ1m project was awarded to digitise modern Welsh writing, a dispute between authors and the library has not been resolved. The library is putting some 3.5m words from 20th Century English and Welsh periodicals and magazines on the web. But literature promotion agency Academi wants writers to be paid a share. Academi chief executive Peter Finch said: “It’s an extremely exciting programme: what’s wrong with it is there is no small sliver in there for paying the writers.
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Published by rwatstein January 20th, 2008
in education and copyright.
The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today announced that three universities–Hofstra, Syracuse and Marquette–have reached agreement with the AAP on new copyright guidelines affirming that educational content delivered to students in digital formats should be treated under the same copyright principles that apply to printed materials. The guidelines, which were developed separately by the three universities, govern how librarians and faculty members distribute copyrighted content through library electronic course reserves systems, course management systems, faculty and departmental web pages and other digital formats.
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Published by rwatstein January 12th, 2008
in copyright and Canada.
The average Canadian might not think twice about taping his or her favourite show on television, using a personal cellphone overseas or listening to music on a newly-purchased CD. But industry officials and observers say that each activity is being threatened by existing copyright regulations and the Conservative government’s pledge to “modernize” Canada’s laws with a new piece of legislation that could make these and other related everyday consumer habits illegal. “There are a growing number of people who recognize that this legislation will directly touch what people can do with their own personal property,” said Michael Geist, the Canada Research Chair of Internet and E-commerce law at the University of Ottawa.
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Published by rwatstein January 12th, 2008
in copyright.
The Creative Commons foundation recently released the CC+ protocol, which allows authors and other content makers to release their work for free (under the Creative Commons noncommercial license) and charge a fee for commercial use at the same time. CC+ is an option for those who wish to dual-license their work. It’s not a new license in and of itself. Rather, it’s an extension that may be applied to the existing Creative Commons license.
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Published by rwatstein December 9th, 2007
in video and copyright.
Nielsen has partnered with Digimarc to digitally “watermark” or fingerprint video clips from media companies circulating on the Internet. Clips would have a unique ID and specific rules could be assigned to govern their uploading and distribution accordingly, to prevent copyright infringement.
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Published by rwatstein November 20th, 2007
in education, books and copyright.
If a book list is the blueprint for a course, Rio Salado College is about to start from scratch. Recently the Arizona community college announced a partnership with Pearson Custom Publishing to allow Rio Salado professors to piece together single individualized textbooks from multiple sources. The result, in what could be the first institution-wide initiative of its kind, will be a savings to students of up to 50 percent, the college estimates, as well as a savings of time to faculty, who often find themselves revising course materials to keep pace with continuously updated editions.
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Published by rwatstein September 29th, 2007
in copyright and data.
Enterprises must invest more heavily in staff training and social engineering tests to ensure corporate data cannot be compromised by outsiders who trick their way into the company, according to experts at this year’s ISSE event in Warsaw. Sharon Conheady, a consultant in social engineering for consultancy Ernst & Young, explained that the scale of the problem is often underestimated by firms, because many are unaware it is even going on. She revealed criminals are using tools such as Google and company web sites to research and gather information about a particular firm, before conning their way into the building with the aim of stealing sensitive data.
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Published by rwatstein September 29th, 2007
in Google and copyright.
Back in July the NLPC examined the extent of copyrighted material being hosted on Google Video and released a “Top 50″ list of copyrighted movies. In the latest inspection of the site, conducted from September 10 to September 18, the NLPC uncovered 300 additional instances of copyrighted films, including 60 movies released this year. Google maintains that it respects the rights of copyright holders and is developing tools for copyright holders to identify and remove their work from the site.
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Published by rwatstein September 22nd, 2007
in copyright.
The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) last week issued a study suggesting that “fair use dependent industries” contributed more than $4.5 trillion in annual revenue for the United States in 2006, roughly one sixth of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP). The $4.5 trillion figure represents a 31 percent increase since 2002, CCIA officials added, estimating that nearly one out of every eight American jobs is in an industry that “benefits from current limitations on copyright.” The study was released at a briefing on Capitol Hill, as lawmakers are being lobbied by the entertainment industry to consider legislating technical solutions to what they’ve characterized as rampant piracy, particularly on college campuses. Opponents have argued that technical solutions are ineffective, costly, and would infringe upon users’ rights.
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