One of the chief issues that creates underlying buzz in the book industry involves copyright, specifically open access. It's the issue that no one wants to talk about until there's an intellectual property theft, or until research paid for with public tax dollars isn't available to teams of researchers elsewhere. The Copyright Clearance Center, one of the leading … [Read more...] about Copyright Clearance Center Launches RightsLink for Open Access
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IPR License Launches Trade Rights to Foster International Rights Sales
One of the world's well-known sources for global books rights is the IPR License organization, making international rights deals possible for authors, agents, and publishers. The organization announced today that it has a new item to offer rights holders, namely a desktop solution to rights selling called Trade Rights. According to an announcement from IPR License, … [Read more...] about IPR License Launches Trade Rights to Foster International Rights Sales
South Africa Among Nations With Least Affinity to Read Books, eBooks Still to Make it Big
eBooks are far from reaching the same levels of popularity in South Africa as in the west and other parts of the world given the high price tag that ebook reading devices attract in the region. This along with bandwidth constraints has made experts predict that printed books will continue to dominate the scene well until 2017. The latest PwC report, "South African … [Read more...] about South Africa Among Nations With Least Affinity to Read Books, eBooks Still to Make it Big
The Battle is Not Over for Google’s Digitization Project
Eight years of legal battles to halt Google's digitization project have not produced the results that some organizations have wanted, and therefore, the litigation will continue. Only a matter of weeks ago, US Circuit Judge Denny Chin ruled that Google's massive digitization project fell within the reasonable bounds of copyright and fair use, throwing out the copyright … [Read more...] about The Battle is Not Over for Google’s Digitization Project
Judge Rules on Sherlock Holmes Public Domain Case
With the dramatic changes that have been taking place in the publishing industry over the last few years, it's easy to forget that some very solid, set in stone rules do still apply where books are concerned. One of those key areas is in copyright, which can be a sensitive issue in terms of anthologizing or crafting new stories based on decades-old characters and works. A US … [Read more...] about Judge Rules on Sherlock Holmes Public Domain Case
India Pushes For Legalizing of Photocopying Academic Books
The seemingly everlasting tussle between the proponents of digital piracy and those opposing it has taken an interesting turn with the Indian government’s move that could legalize copying of textbooks and course materials. There already are reports that claim the Indian government is considering moving a petition before the World Intellectual Property Organization, seeking a … [Read more...] about India Pushes For Legalizing of Photocopying Academic Books
Copyright and Open Access: The Future of Publishing
Frankfurt Book Fair has grown into an event that encompasses so much about the publishing industry, with special events focused on self-publishing and six different exhibit halls dedicated to various aspects of digital publishing. But what once was known to be simply a rights fair still serves as a hub of copyright issue, as evidenced by the Copyright Clearance Center’s panel, … [Read more...] about Copyright and Open Access: The Future of Publishing
De Gruyter, Unglue.it Work Together to Crowdfund Open Source Textbooks
When Unglue.it first launched its platform to strip the copyright status of books once a crowdfunded, pre-determined amount of money had been raised, skeptics spoke out. Not against that concept of "ungluing" a book, of course, but against the idea that ordinary readers would be willing to donate money to a publisher to make a book permanently public domain. Happily, Unglue.it … [Read more...] about De Gruyter, Unglue.it Work Together to Crowdfund Open Source Textbooks
A Zone Legally Free of US Copyright in the Caribbean?
The little guy may get his licks in! The US blocked access to Antigua's internet sports booking business, which, at one point, accounted for 5% of the islands employment. In 2003 the island took the US to the World Trade Organization and it won! The WTO ruled that the "… US had adopted measures that interfered with its obligation to provide free trade in betting and gambling … [Read more...] about A Zone Legally Free of US Copyright in the Caribbean?
Unglue.it Unleashes Two New Crowd-Sourced Titles
One of the more innovative concepts that has grown out of digital publishing is the concept of crowd-sourced "ungluing," a way to allow reader fans to remove the copyright status of books by pledging funding to buy the rights from the author under Creative Commons status of copyright law. Once a book has become "unglued," it can be read by anyone on any device for free while … [Read more...] about Unglue.it Unleashes Two New Crowd-Sourced Titles