In 2002, ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) established the L. Ray Patterson Copyright Award to honor particular individuals or groups who “embody the spirit of the U.S. Copyright law as voiced by the framers of our constitution: ‘to advance the knowledge of science and useful arts’ (U.S. Constitution, art 1, sec 8).
Nominations for the 2010 award will be accepted through March 1, 2010.
Ray Patterson was a foremost legal thinker, writer and champion of users’ rights. He was a pioneer who exposed the restrictive nature of new interpretations and unnecessary expansions of contemporary copyright law. For librarians, Patterson was a key legal figure who articulated how corporate interests have sidetracked the true purpose of copyright – to advance learning and the dissemination of knowledge. Through numerous books, articles, and briefs, Patterson highlighted and justified the importance of the public domain and fair use.
In recognition of his life accomplishments and contributions, the American Library Association calls for nominations to the award established in Patterson’s name. Appropriate nominees for the Patterson Award are persons or groups who have made significant and consistent contributions in the areas of academia, law, politics, public policy, libraries or library education to the pursuit of copyright principles as outlined below.
The fundamental tenets established by Congress when crafting U.S. Copyright law:
- The creation of new knowledge and the arts is encouraged;
- The creation and dissemination of knowledge is the purpose of copyright;
- Congress is granted the power to encourage creation of new works, but only via a very specific method, by granting authors and inventors exclusive rights;
- The exclusive rights granted should be for a limited time;
- Authors and inventors can benefit financially from copyright but this is a side effect of encouraging the dissemination of knowledge, the direct intent of copyright; and
- The rights of authors and inventors are granted by Congress and are not intrinsic or natural.
Past awardees include Peter Jaszi, Law Professor at the American University Washington College, Prudence Adler, Association of Research Libraries, Kenny Crews, Columbia University, Peggy Hoon, University of North Carolina and Jack Bernard, University of Michigan.
Please send letters of nomination outlining a candidate’s qualifications for this award to Carrie Russell, Director, Program on Public Access to Information, ALA Office for Information Technology Policy, 1615 New Hampshire Avenue NW, First Floor, Washington, DC 20009, or to crussell@alawash.org. Please include illustrate examples of how your nominee has contributed to the pursuit of the fundamental tenets of copyright law. Nominees who have worked or collaborated with libraries will be given special consideration.
In its February 4th filing, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) again has recommended that the Court send the settlement parties back to the drawing board to re-negotiate the terms in the amended settlement agreement (ASA) due to continued concerns regarding the scope of the agreement. Stating that the ASA “suffers from the same core problem as the original agreement,” the US DOJ argues that the class settlement mechanism has been used by Google, the Association of American Publishers (AAP) and the Authors Guild to settle a dispute that goes well beyond the initial complaint – whether the scanning of books to provide an online searchable index is a fair use. Instead, the agreement establishes a new business arrangement for the sale of books without providing sufficient notice to rights holders in a fashion that conveys to Google market dominance. The US DOJ also expressed concern about the Books Rights Registry and its control over the “Unclaimed Works Fiduciary,” that would dictate pricing and terms of use for unclaimed works. The filing (pdf) also includes a list of recommendations for the Court should it decide to approve the ASA at the fairness hearing scheduled for February 18th.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/531394042
John Windhausen, consultant to ALA’s Washington Office and president of Telepoly, and Christopher Mclean, Principal of e-Copernicus and former Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), will provide more in depth information about Round II of BTOP and BIP — the federal broadband stimulus programs at the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture. Included will be a brief discussion of key suggestions for making your application successful made at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Denver workshop.
Date: Friday, February 5, 2010
Time: 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM EST
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Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) has indicated that he and Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) plan to introduce the Senate’s $80 billion version of the Jobs for Main Street Act tomorrow. This bill, also simply known as the “Jobs Bill,” is designed to get Americans back to work but does not include any money for libraries or librarians. However, it does include $18 billion for hiring and retaining teachers, $500 million for hiring police officers, and an additional $500 million for hiring firefighters.
Please call your two U.S. senators and urge them to include the hiring and retaining of librarians in the Senate version of the Jobs Bill. The reason why librarians have been left out is that Congress has not heard from librarians like they have heard from teachers, police officers, or firefighters. Tell your senators your stories about how your library has helped to find people jobs, or create resumes, and search for jobs.
It is critically important you make these calls in support of libraries. Without your help, we will not be able to get libraries into this jobs bill!
Call your Senators at the U.S. Capital switchboard ASAP: 202-224-3121.
Click here for more information.
Jeff Kratz
Assistant Director, OGR
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Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/531394042
John Windhausen, consultant to ALA’s Washington Office and president of Telepoly, and Christopher Mclean, Principal of e-Copernicus and former Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), will provide more in depth information about Round II of BTOP and BIP — the federal broadband stimulus programs at the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture. Included will be a brief discussion of key suggestions for making your application successful made at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Denver workshop.
Date: Friday, February 5, 2010
Time: 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM EST
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