The current copyright protection allows for libraries to copy “a work in their collections that is damaged, deteriorating, lost or stolen or whose format has become obsolete” three times. As Ars Technica notes, this means that no copying can be done until destruction or damage is actually underway. The Library ... more >
Larry Townsend, a famous GLBT author of The Leatherman’s Handbook and its sequel, The Leatherman’s Handbook II, has sued a number of booksellers for infringing on his copyright by selling copies of his books. Townsend had originally been self publishing and self distributing until he made an agreement with Nazca ... more >
I just read on GalleyCat that some prime legal minds will be representing RDR in the defense of the Rowling copyright infringement lawsuit. If you aren’t up to date on this, the facts, briefly, shake out as follows: Harry Potter Lexicon site starts up in 2000 Promotes Pottermania and is ... more >
A lawsuit was originally brought and decided in 2001 over the digital reproduction of work by freelance writers. The Supreme Court found in favor of the writers and the publishers began to remove the work from the archives. There remained, however, the issue of damages. A settlement had been agreed ... more >
What might be one of the most important copyright decisions since Sony v. Universal Studios is the case against Google for scanning books. I’m guessing that Google is operating under the belief that the scanning of the books and then offering portions of it in digital format for searchers is ... more >
Earlier this year, the copyright/plagiarism suit brought by Stuart Silverstein went to trial. Yesterday, the trial judge found in favor of Penguin (pdf link to ruling) and against the author holding that there simply wasn’t any creativity in the work that Silverstein compiled since ALL of the uncollected poems were ... more >