I am forwarding this information from other professionals. I hope that some of you will have time to send in comments about the proposed changes to the copyright law. The deadline is April 17th.
Background (from the copyright office, http://www.loc.gov/section108/docs/FRbackground2-10-06.pdf ): The Section 108 Study Group was convened in April 2005 under the sponsorship of the Library of Congress' National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP),1 in cooperation with the U.S. Copyright Office. The group was named for section 108 of the Copyright Act,2 which provides special exceptions to the exclusive rights of copyright owners3 for libraries and archives. The Study Group is charged with examining how the section 108 exceptions and limitations may need to be amended, specifically in light of the changes produced by the widespread use of digital technologies. The nineteen-member Study Group is made up of experts in copyright law, from the various copyright industries, as well as from libraries, archives, and museums. The group intends to submit findings and recommendations on how to revise section 108 to the Librarian of Congress by late 2006. More detailed information regarding the Section 108 Study Group can be found at www.loc.gov/section108 . Digital works present different challenges for libraries and archives, as well as for rights-holders, including the fact that libraries' and archives' preservation and use of digital materials implicate copyright in ways that analog materials do not. In the planning stages for NDIIPP, copyright issues were identified as one of the major hurdles to effective digital preservation - the fact that digital preservation cannot be conducted without making multiple copies, and the lack of statutory copyright exceptions that clearly permit activities necessary for effective preservation. 5 In many of their day to day activities, such as cataloging and storage, libraries and archives must make copies, often temporary, of digital works due to the nature of digital technology - whereas copies are not made for the cataloging and storage of analog works. Section 108 does not address these routine digital copies. etc. The Issue: Why not museums? the Federal Register lists 4 topics under consideration. Topic 1 asks who should be eligible for Section 108 exceptions. Topic 2 addresses specific changes proposed to section 108(b) and (c). Topic 3 asks about taking copyrighted copies for preservation purposes. Topic 4 discusses the archiving of websites in their entirety. Topic 1 raises the question specifically about museums, although the other Topics would still have some ramifications in the museum community, IMO. If you would have time to send comments about how you and your institution would be impacted by Section 108, please forward them here: Written Comments: Interested parties may submit written comments on any of the topics discussed in the Federal Register notice after 8:30 a.m. E.S.T. on March 17, 2006, and on or before 5:00 p.m. E.S.T. on April 17, 2006. All written comments and requests to participate in roundtables should be addressed to Mary Rasenberger, Policy Advisor for Special Programs, U.S. Copyright Office. Comments may be sent (1) by electronic mail (preferred) to the e-mail address [email protected] (2) by commercial, non-government courier or messenger, addressed to the U.S. Copyright Office, James Madison Memorial Building, Room LM-401, 101 Independence Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20559-6000, and delivered to the Congressional Courier Acceptance Site (CCAS), 2nd and D Streets, NE, Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. E.S.T. (3) by hand delivery by a private party to the Public Information Office, U.S. Copyright Office, James Madison Memorial Building, Room LM-401, 101 Independence Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20559-6000, between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. E.S.T. Written comments must include the following information: (1) the name of the person making the submission; (2) the organization(s) represented by that person, if any; (3) contact information (address, telephone, telefax, and e-mail); and (4) a statement of no more than 10 pages, responding to any of the general issues or specific questions in this notice. If by e-mail (preferred): Send to the e-mail address [email protected] a message containing the information required above for the request to participate or the written submission, as applicable. The summary of issues (for the request to participate in the roundtable discussions) or statement (for the written comments), as applicable, may be included in the text of the message, or may be sent as an attachment. If sent as an attachment, the summary of issues or written statement must be in a single file in either: (1) Adobe Portable Document File (PDF) format; (2) Microsoft Word version 2000 or earlier; (3) WordPerfect version 9.0 or earlier; (4) Rich Text File (RTF) format; or (5) ASCII text file format. If by hand delivery by a private party or a commercial, non-government courier or messenger: Deliver to the appropriate address listed above, a cover letter with the information required above, and include two copies of the summary of issues or written statement, as applicable, each on a write-protected 3.5-inch diskette or CD-ROM, labeled with the legal name of the person making the submission and, if applicable, his or her title and organization. The document itself must be in a single file in either (1) Adobe Portable Document File (PDF) format; (2) Microsoft Word Version 2000 or earlier; (3) WordPerfect Version 9 or earlier; (4) Rich Text File (RTF) format; or (5) ASCII text file format. Anyone who is unable to submit a comment in electronic form (either through electronic e-mail or hand delivery of a diskette or CD-ROM) should submit, with a cover letter containing the information required above, an original and three paper copies of the summary of issues (for the request to participate in the roundtable discussions) or statement (for the written comments) by hand to the appropriate address listed above. Perian Sully Collection Database & Records Administrator Judah L. Magnes Museum 2911 Russell St. Berkeley, CA 94705 You are currently subscribed to MCN-L, the listserv of the Museum Computer Network (www.mcn.edu). 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