Forwarded from the ALA Washington Office and posted on behalf of the ARLIS/NA Public Policy Committee. A link to the full statement is provided in the message below.

Roger Lawson, co-chair

ARLIS/NA Public Policy Committee

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Library Copyright Alliance releases statement on copyright reform

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) today released a statement describing the key features copyright reform proposals should include in order to constitute significant improvement over current law for libraries and their users.

Interested parties are discussing with renewed vigor the issues of orphan works, mass digitization, and even modernization of Section 108 of the U.S. Copyright Act in the wake of the Google Books settlement rejection by Judge Denny Chin of the Southern District of New York. The LCA statement, which represents the needs of library stakeholders in these debates, provides helpful guideposts for these discussions.

Libraries have always advocated for reasonable copyright policy – in the courts as well as in the U.S. Congress. Library activities already benefit from broad, flexible protection under the fair use doctrine and related provisions in current law. The LCA’s statement describes the status quo for libraries as well as the policies that would constitute substantial legislative improvement to existing copyright law.