The ADA Monthly Intellectual Property Wrap-Up ---------------------------------------------------------------- A monthly summary of recent legislation, cases, reports and other events relating to intellectual property and the public interest, published by the Australian Digital Alliance. -------------------------------------------------------------- March/April 2005 -------------------------------------------------------------- [1] About this Publication [2] CLRC Report on the issue of Crown Copyright Released [3] Orphaned Works - US Developments & Australian Conundrums [4] Fair Dealing Review: ADA Forum on 26 May 2005 [5] I can copy, right? [1] About this publication This summary of recent IP (but chiefly copyright) happenings of relevance to Australia is published every month by email and on the Australian Digital Alliance website at http://www.digital.org.au/issue/issue.htm. If you have any suggestions as to what should go in the next issue, please let Sarah Waladan know by email: (swaladan@nla.gov.au). Nothing in this publication constitutes legal advice. [2] CLRC Report on the issue of Crown Copyright Released In December 2003, the Attorney-General gave the CLRC a new reference to examine the law relating to Government ownership of copyright material. Pursuant to part VII of the Copyright Act 1968, the Government owns copyright in any work, film or sound recording made by or under the direction or control of the Government, and any work first published by or under the direction or control of the Government. These provisions have been criticized for a number of reasons, including that they provide Government with preferential treatment compared with other parties, that this is inconsistent with the principle of competitive neutrality, and that Government should be under an obligation to widely disseminate certain types of materials when it is in the public interest, and that copyright may provide a hinderance in such circumstances. One of the CLRC's main aims was to examine whether Government should be in a privileged position compared with other owners of copyright. Essentially the CLRC found that it should not. The Report itself is detailed and thorough and can be found here Briefly, the CLRC recommendations include: That the provisions relating to subsistence and ownership of Crown copyright in sections 176-9 be repealed; That a defined term of protection continue to apply to materials owned by the Crown: That section 35(6) relating to ownership of copyright in works produced by employees, should be amended so as to also apply to an officer or servant of the Crown in the course of his/her duties That copyright in certain judicial, legislative and executive materials (including legislation, judicial decisions, official records of parliamentary debates, reports of commissions of inquiry etc.), should be abolished; That the Commonwealth, States and Territories be under a statutory duty to disseminate legislation and judgements; That the Crown prerogative in the nature of copyright be abolished (basically because it is antiquated and its extent and application are uncertain); That section 182A be repealed (on the basis that copyright will not subsist in the works covered by this section if the above recommendations are implemented); That a non-exhaustive list of Government entities be created to remove uncertainty in relation to the status of certain bodies and whether they are or are not covered by provisions relating to the Crown; That the issue of consistent copyright management be referred to the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General for consideration; That each Government give a central agency responsibility for managing Crown copyright; That the role of the Commonwealth Copyright Administration be expanded to providing advice and guidance, and that its responsibility be broadened to managing copyright in film and sound recordings; That the Commonwealth develop and implement comprehensive intellectual property management guidelines to promote best practice and assist agencies to meet their responsibilities. [3] Orphaned Works - US Developments and Australian Conundrums The US Copyright Office is holding an inquiry into the issue of orphaned works in response to concerns that the uncertainty surrounding works whose owners are difficult or even impossible to locate might needlessly discourage subsequent creators and users from incorporating such works in new creative efforts or making such works available to the public. As you are probably aware, the issue of orphaned works is a big problem for libraries and educational and cultural institutions in Australia as well. This is an important time to consider this issue. With the Government's upcoming inquiry into our fair dealing exceptions, institutions should consider how the issue of orphaned works should best be resolved, and how to best fit this in with any consultation on how the fair dealing provisions should be amended or expanded. The US Copyright Office Notice of Inquiry can be viewed here Many submissions have already been received by the Office, and may be useful reading for our own upcoming consultations. The submissions on orphaned works can be viewed here In its notice of inquiry, the US Office notes the Canadian system where a specific legislative provision allows anyone seeking to use an 'orphaned' work who cannot find the owner, to petition the Canadian Copyright Board for a license. The Board then administers a fund from which owners can be paid should they make a claim. More information about the Canadian approach can be found here [4] Fair Dealing Review: ADA Forum on 26 May 2005 The issues paper initiating the fair dealing review which will be conducted by the Attorney-General's Department, is expected to be released in the next 1-2 weeks. The ADA will be hosting a forum on this issue on Thursday 26 May 2005 from 9.30am - 4.00pm, at the National Library of Australia in Canberra. The purpose of this forum will be to inform members of the scope of the Government's review and its implications, in order to enable members to best respond. It will provide a forum to work through the issues, options and outcomes available. The Agenda and registration form are available here. Those interested in attending should send a completed registration form to the executive officer by email or fax. (Email: swaladan@nla.gov.au, Fax: 02 6273 2545) [5] I can copy, right? Yes, you can copy this publication. Feel free to send it to friends or colleagues, print it off or even archive it on your website provided that all text is included or, in the case of an excerpt, appropriate credit is given     News | Membership | Contact Us