No. 7
July 16, 1997
A news and information digest for those working to
preserve and provide
access to cultural heritage resources through networked digital
technology.
D-Lib: July-August Issue (includes NINCH article on Networking
Moving Images
Ariadne: July Issue
ACLS Publishes Survey of Information Technology in Humanities
Scholarship.
Getty AAT & ULAN: Now Online
Perseus Expands Into English Renaissance
Recent personnel changes
Midsummer, and it's time for the broad cultural community to assess where it stands and determine what its next steps are with regard to a number of copyright related issues. As the Association of Research Libraries has put it, one of the goals of the educational community should be to develop a consensus about "the kind of practices in digital environments that are understood to represent responsible applications of copyright, especially fair use."
We should be able to extend that to the even broader cultural community (engaging museums, artists and arts organizations as well as libraries, education and research institutions). What is fair and just in the use of "intellectual property" on the networks? What are the tools that we need to proceed? See for a start, the Copyright Special Issue of the ARL Newsletter for June 1997.
A number of developments have now come to a head that make this the time to seriously survey the landscape and consider the direction we take. What has brought us to this pass?
Both last year's domestic legislation, the "NII Copyright Protection Act," and the World Intellectual Property Organization's Copyright Treaty contained language that skewed the current balance away from that of existing copyright statute, re-asserting the rights of copyright holders at the expense of certain limitations, notably Fair Use. Fortunately, the legislation was stalled and the final WIPO language reasserted the balance between the rights of copyright holders and socially necessary limitations and exemptions to those rights.
As we prepare for new domestic legislation (including WIPO implementing legislation) we need to be clear about what our values and priorities are. As a member of the Digital Future Coalition, NINCH has been an enthusiastic supporter of its positions and legislative activity. As a community we all need to be clear about the issues and Congressional developments.
The longstanding Conference on Fair Use came to its ambiguous conclusion this May. None of the proposed guidelines gained majority support and many in the nonprofit educational world felt that their voices were not fully heard nor were their positions included in the guidelines. Some are prepared to continue the conversations; some are willing to test the guidelines but there was generally a very strong feeling of blockage and difficulty. There was the question whether some rights holders accepted and understood Fair Use as a fundamental aspect of copyright practice, or saw it as an obstruction to efficient commercial business. See the Joint Statement by Libraries and Cultural Organizations.
Taking the debate on the road, the College Art Association and American Council of Learned Societies organized a series of Kress Foundation-funded town meetings to discuss the fate of fair use in a digital environment. Three were held before May 19 (a report is available) and three more are being scheduled. These educate the audience, air questions and grievances and gradually evolve an understanding of what positions and actions we may need to take.
The next Town Meeting is scheduled for September 26-27 at Reed College, Portland, Oregon, entitled: "Copyright Law in the Digital World: Fair Use, Education and Libraries after CONFU." Stay tuned for further announcements.
A committee of the National Humanities Alliance drew up a set of basic principles in an effort to build consensus within the educational community on the uses of copyrighted works in the digital environment. Currently seeking endorsements from as many in the educational community as possible, this document is a model for assembling community-wide bedrock principles upon which we build practice. If other communities are evolving similar principles or policies, we should encourage them and integrate their understanding.
Research libraries are now battling commercial vendors delivering digital content via licensing arrangements. Both sides are determining, often through negotiation and practice, what acceptable terms and conditions are. They have been aided by a number of recent resources, among them the "LibLicense: Licensing Electronic Resources" website and discussion list and "Principles for Licensing Electronic Resources," produced by six library associations. In another realm, the Museum Educational Site Licensing Project (MESL), examining the issues involved in licensing the use of digital images from museums' collections on university campuses, is terminating and about to release its report. Two museum licensing collectives are now being formed to put MESL's lessons and recommendations into practice.
Out of many of these developments, many have come to the realization that online, a great majority of us, both as individuals and institutions, will be creators, copyright holders and users of intellectual property. The scenario is a far more complex one than that between those who are exclusively copyright holders and those who are exclusively users of copyrighted material.
Douglas Bennett has now left ACLS and is ensconced as President of Earlham College; his position as Vice President is currently unfilled. Stan Katz leaves his position as President of ACLS at the end of August; John D'Arms takes his place September 1.
Clifford Lynch, formerly Director of Library Automation at the University of California, is now installed as Executive Director of the Coalition for Networked Information. See press release.
Scott Stoner, Director of ArtsEdge at the Kennedy Center, also left this Spring. A search for his replacement is currently underway.
Ellen Lovell, Executive Director of the President's Committee departed for the White House this Spring. Her new position is as Deputy Chief of Staff for the First Lady. Taking her place is Harriet Fulbright, formerly president of the Center for Arts in the Curriculum and, from 1987 to 1990, executive director of the Fulbright Association.
For comments or suggestions on this newsletter and
its content,
e-mail David Green or call
202/296-5346.
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