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Lofgren Sheds Light On Copyright 'Dark Archives'
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., plans to introduce and withdraw several amendments at Wednesday's House Judiciary Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property Subcommittee mark up of so-called "orphan works" legislation to spotlight changes that she believes are needed before the bill reaches the House floor. The measure, introduced by the subcommittee's chairman Howard Berman, D-Calif., is aimed at reworking part of U.S. copyright law that deals with musical tracks, writings, images or videos whose owners cannot easily be located.
While she wanted to keep specifics of her amendments under wraps to "maintain the element of surprise," Lofgren said Tuesday that one proposal would erase what has become known as a "dark archives" provision, which would require individuals to notify the Copyright Office of their intention to use an orphan work. The American Library Association and others believe that language would drive up compliance costs and require academics to confer with university lawyers prior to filing submissions with the office.
Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., also reportedly has problems with the bill, which is cosponsored by Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, ranking member Lamar Smith and the IP subcommittee's top Republican Howard Coble of North Carolina.
Posted by Andrew on May 6, 2008 11:53 PM | Permalink
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