Public Policy Connections

Antitrust Inquiry into Google Books Deal Opened by USDOJ

The U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) has begun an inquiry into the antitrust implications of Google’s settlement with authors and publishers over its Google Book Search service. The settlement, announced in October, gives Google the right to display the books online and to profit from them by selling access to individual texts and selling subscriptions to its entire collection to libraries and other institutions. Revenue would be shared among Google, authors and publishers.

USDOJ lawyers recently notified the parties to the settlement, including Google, and representatives for the Association of American Publishers and the Authors Guild, that they were looking into various antitrust issues related to the far-reaching agreement.

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New York Times 
Wall Street Journal
PC World

 

UK Plan to Monitor all Internet Use

The United Kingdom (UK) Home Office is asking UK communication service providers (CSPs) to extend the range of information they currently hold on their subscribers for use by the police, MI5 and other public bodies investigating crime and terrorism. CSPs are being asked to record internet contacts between people, but not the content, as part of a modernization in UK police surveillance tactics. The new system would track all e-mails, phone calls and Internet use, including visits to social network sites.
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CIC Partnering with Google on Government Documents Project

The libraries of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC) universities are partnering with Google to digitize a comprehensive collection of U.S. Federal Documents. The workflow and scanning process for the initiative is being tested by the University of Minnesota. Digital facsimiles of successfully scanned Federal Documents from Minnesota -- and eventually other CIC institutions -- will be returned to the HathiTrust Digital Repository, where public domain material can be universally accessed. This project is part of an overarching CIC Library Director-led initiative to assess the opportunities HathiTrust might provide for more cost-effective management of less frequently used print resources.
Read more from CIC.

U.S. Federal Digital System Launched by GPO

The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) has launched FDsys, its new Federal Digital System. FDsys allows world-wide access to find current, authentic, published information from all three branches of the U.S. Government. The FDsys also incorporates a Compilation of Presidential Documents comprised of weekly and daily documents, which are the official publications of materials released by the White House Press Secretary.

2009 National Library Legislative Day

The 2009 National Library Legislative Day will be held 11-12 May 2009 in Washington, DC. With the Obama administration in place, there is a notable change in the political climate: this is a critical and exciting time for information professionals to get their message out to Congress. 
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Comment Deadline for NARA’s RFI on Alternative Models for Presidential Libraries Extended to 21 May 2009

On 17 April 2009, several organizations concerned with transparency and accountability in the federal government, including SLA, wrote a letter to Adrienne C. Thomas, Acting Archivist of the United States National Archives and Records Administration, in response to the National Archives and Records Administration’s (NARA) recent request for input (RFI) into the development of alternative models for Presidential Libraries with a deadline of 21 April 2009.

The letter, stating that it is critical that NARA take full account of the effect any alternative model may have on the public’s ability to gain access to important historical documents and on NARA’s obligation to provide the public with timely access to important historical documents, requests an extension of the comment period beyond the 21 days allotted for public comments. The extension was granted on 21 April 2009 in a revised letter from NARA, extending the deadline to 21 May 2009.

Australian ISPs may be Liable for Illegal Peer-to-Peer Downloads

The Australian New South Wales Federal Court has not ruled out the possibility that an Internet service provider (ISP) could be in direct breach of copyright laws if it provides Internet service to individuals that illegally share files on peer-to-peer networks. A group of copyright holders represented by the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft claimed, as a part of its copyright case against Perth-headquartered ISP iiNet, that ISPs could be in direct breach of copyright laws if they allow individuals to illegally share files on their networks. The complex legal claim contends that iiNet’s networks took an active role of copying movies and other copyrighted content. 
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SLA Voices Strong Concerns to Governor about OEE Budget Elimination

On 9 April 2009, SLA sent a letter to North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue expressing strong concern over the proposed budget elimination of the North Carolina Office of Environmental Education (OEE). Stressing the fact that the citizenry of North Carolina and beyond rely on the services and information provided by the OEE to effectively conduct their work, SLA requested a detailed plan of how the valuable services of the OEE will be continued with the elimination of its budget and stated that a more realistic budget will serve the interests of government, business, and private citizens -- saving more money in the long run.

SLA opposes the elimination, downsizing or diminution of information services at OEE until a detailed plan is produced and vetted by qualified information and policy experts who understand the critical nature of maintaining valuable services and access to information for current and future users—government, business, researchers, and individuals.

World Digital Library to be Launched by UNESCO, Library of Congress, and Partners

On 21 April 2009, UNESCO, Library of Congress, and 32 partner institutions will launch the World Digital Library (WDL), a Web site featuring unique cultural materials from libraries and archives from around the world. The site will include manuscripts, maps, rare books, films, sound recordings, and prints and photographs. The WDL will provide unrestricted public access, free of charge, to this material and will include content in many languages.
Read Library of Congress news release.
View WDL Prototype.

Letter to President Obama: IP Policy Appointees Should Represent Broader Perspective

On 2 April 2009, multiple library associations (including SLA), public interest groups and trade associations sent a letter to President Obama asking that his future appointments to intellectual property (IP) policy positions reflect the diversity of stakeholders affected by IP policy, and that his administration create offices devoted to promoting innovation and free expression within the relevant agencies.

Several of President Obama’s appointees to positions that oversee the formulation and implementation of IP policy have, immediately prior to their appointments, represented copyright industries. There is concern because overzealous expansion and enforcement of copyright can quash innovative information technologies, the development and marketing of new and useful devices, and the creation of new works, as well as prohibit the public from accessing and using its cultural heritage.

SLA’s Public Policy Platform supports government policies that strike a fair and equitable balance among the rights and interests of all parties in the creation, distribution, and use of information and other intellectual property.

Read letter sent to President Obama

Read article in Wired News