Authors Guild and HathiTrust submit final briefs
Attorneys for both parties in the Authors Guild vs HathiTrust case questioned whether the mass-digitisation project was ‘fair use’ in their final briefs on motions for summary judgment. Since no...
Copyright Licensing New Zealand rebrands
New Zealand’s copyright agency has changed its name and rebranded. Formerly called Copyright Licensing Limited (CLL), the organisation has been renamed Copyright Licensing New Zealand (CLNZ). ‘Our new brand name,...
Google reaches deal with French publishers
In France, Google has reached an agreement with publishers and authors over the scanning of French works, which the internet giant hopes with ‘help jump-start’ the French ebook market, reports...
Google Books case to proceed as a class action
In the US, judge Denny Chin has rejected Google’s motion to dismiss the Authors Guild as an associational plaintiff and has granted the Author’s Guild motion for class certification, clearing...
ACCC approves service agreement between CAL and Viscopy
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has approved a service agreement between the Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) and Viscopy Limited, the not-for-profit rights management organisation for the visual arts...
Judge asked to rule on ‘fair use’ in HathiTrust case
The latest actions in the copyright infringement lawsuit against digital repository HathiTrust and five universities in the US could force a more specific legal definition of what constitutes 'fair use'...
Judge asked to rule on ‘fair use’ in Hathitrust case
The latest actions in the copyright infringement lawsuit against digital repository HathiTrust and five universities in the US could force a more specific legal definition of what constitutes 'fair use' of digitised...
Cudo pulls ereader deal with pirated ebooks
An Australian group-buying site owned by Microsoft and Nine Entertainment has withdrawn an ereader deal that included 4000 pirated ebooks. Last week, Cudo advertised a $99 ereader which came with a CD of ebooks, including titles...
ASA expresses concerns about changes at CAL
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has expressed concerns about recent changes at Copyright Agency Limited (CAL), which mean that there is no longer a dedicated author manager position at...
BISG recommendations announced
The Book Industry Strategy Group (BISG) has recommended the timetable for retention of territorial copyright in Australia be reduced from 30/90 days to 14/14 days in its final report to...
HathiTrust ‘suspends’ orphan works project indefinitely
In the US, digital repository HathiTrust has announced that it has suspended its orphan works initiative indefinitely following the filing of a copyright infringement lawsuit by individual authors and authors'...
ASA among authors’ groups suing US universities for copyright infringement
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has joined forces with authors' groups in the US and Quebec and eight individual authors to file a copyright infringement lawsuit against digital repository...
Judge rejects Google Settlement, recommends change to ‘opt-in’
In the US, judge Denny Chin has announced he has rejected the Google Book Settlement.Publishers Weekly reported that Chin had concluded that the settlement was 'not fair, adequate and reasonable'.Chin...
Finch Publishing reports illegal downloads from scribd site
Finch Publishing will be seeking compensation for a breach of copyright on the US website scribd. ‘An illegal digital version of one of our books, Bully Blocking by Evelyn Field,...
Grant appointed to CAL board, Johns steps down
Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) has announced the appointment of Hardie Grant Publishing chief executive Sandy Grant as chair of its board. Grant, who has been on the CAL board since...
NZ Society of Authors calls for NZ Government action on the Google Settlement
The New Zealand Society of Authors (PEN NZ Inc.) is demanding action from the NZ government on the Google Book Settlement as the 4 September deadline for rightsholders to ‘opt...
APA attends the Hong Kong Publishing Copyright Fair
Hong Kong Book Fair finished yesterday, 28 July, having run from 22 July. The Australian Publishers Association (APA), with assistance from CAL, Austrade and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council,...
Quotes of the week
‘Subscriptions and consumer online purchasing and advertising, there's per-page printing at public access terminals in libraries ... there's a whole lot of new ways for authors to be paid if...
How much I import and why: a bookseller explains
Writing about how the Productivity Commission could ‘usefully spend its additional time' in studying parallel importation legislation in Australia, former John Wiley & Sons managing director Peter Donoughue posed the...
Productivity Commission parallel importation report to government: deadline extended to 30 June, media coverage continues
As reported in a WBN special bulletin last week, the Assistant Treasurer Chris Bowen has announced an extended deadline of 30 June for the Productivity Commission's report to government on parallel...