Campus Copyright

Peer-to-Peer File Sharing on Campuses – US House Hearing

On Wednesday, September 27, the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Education and the Workforce's Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness held a hearing on the impact of copyright infringement, particularly through the Internet, on college campuses. Witnesses from the higher education community and from the entertainment industry discussed ways they are cooperating to address the problem. The witnesses from the educational institutions made clear that they are using a variety of methods to deal with what is both a legal problem, in terms of illegal downloading of information, and a practical one, in that downloading of music, games, and movies puts a strain on schools'

Internet capacity.

In response to criticisms of the entertainment industry witnesses, the higher education representatives noted that their institutions take these concerns seriously and are working hard to combine practical solutions, such as providing legal alternatives for obtaining music, with education about copyright law.

In March of this year, the House passed H.R. 609, a bill to reauthorize the Higher Education Act, and included language to allow universities to use federal funds to address the Internet infringement problem. With the limited time left in this session, however, neither the House nor the Senate will pass any higher education legislation before the 109th Congress adjourns.

The witness list and testimony is available on the Subcommittee's web pages http://edworkforce.house.gov/hearings/109th/21st/piracy092606/wl092606.htm

Conundrum on Copyright at Cornell

The article in the Chronicle titled CORNELL STEERS FACULTY AWAY FROM COPYRIGHT PROBLEMS by Jeffrey R. Young, is a constant concern for librarians who encounter continuous threats of complaints from the likes of the Association of American Publishers.  Without reviewing more of the details of the case, Cornell University, working with the association, has developed a set of guidelines to help faculty avoid copyright violations when placing materials on electronic reserve.

Why should they?  Fair Use guidelines are the primary consideration.  Fair use guidelines are the issues, not the needs of profits from an associatoin of publisher's. Publishers may be feeling threatened by actions in academia's more agressive move toward Creative Commons, Open Sourcing, etc. 

In the spring, the association sent a letter to Cornell expressing concern over what it saw as the common practice of failing to apply fair-use principles to electronic content. Allan Adler, vice president for legal and governmental affairs at the association, said the new guidelines embody the notion that copyright protections apply equally to hard-copy and online material. Biddy Martin, provost of Cornell, sent a letter to the academic deans describing the guidelines as the university's attempt to protect "the faculty's legitimate interests while averting the threat of litigation." Patricia McClary, associate university counsel for Cornell, said she does not think that Cornell faculty in general are more guilty of abusing copyright through electronic reserves than the faculty of peer institutions. Adler agreed, noting that the association hopes to arrange similar efforts at other institutions. "We think it's a widespread problem," he said.
Chronicle of Higher Education, 19 September 2006 (sub. req'd)
http://chronicle.com/daily/2006/09/2006091901t.htm