Jonathan (01)
I like this summary email and specifically the plan of action. At the next
SCC meeting I will make available a time slot to discuss it further and find
volunteers to implement specifics steps. (02)
Bernard (03)
-----Original Message-----
From: scc_active-bounces@computerhistory.org
[mailto:scc_active-bounces@computerhistory.org] On Behalf Of Jonathan Cheyer
Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2006 9:30 AM
To: SCC_active@computerhistory.org
Cc: hyperscope-dev; nls-legal@chm.cim3.net
Subject: [SCC_Active_Members] orphan works (04)
My apologies for the cross-posting. This topic is important across several
of our communities and would benefit from our coming together as a whole to
deal with this. (05)
As scc_active folks may rembember, Kathe Gust recently posted to a link to
document on orphan works. (06)
For those who don't know, the US Copyright Office has recently completed a
200 page report on the orphan works, what they are, and why the current law
creates this problem. (07)
http://www.copyright.gov/orphan/ (08)
Among other things, the Copyright Office report makes recommendations to
Congress that the law be changed, precisely to handle cases such as ours. (09)
While there has been some interest by Congress in this report (specifically
noted are Senator Orrin Hatch and Senator Patrick Leahy), existing efforts,
such as the so-called Preservation of Orphan Works Act have not been
successful.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h108-5136 (010)
Current US Copyright law regarding reproduction by libraries and archives is
insufficient to allow software preservation projects such as those within
the Computer History Museum to flourish.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode17/usc_sec_17_00000108----000-.
html (011)
The copyrights on software works that the CHM is interested in are typically
owned by corporations that have bought and acquired divisions multiple times
over a number of years, and they do not even know if they own they copyright
in some cases. (012)
Indeed, the effort undertaken by volunteers to attempt to locate copyright
ownership of works has already been substantial. And it will have to be
repeated for each and every project that the CHM plans to preserve. The
current law is hampering efforts by libraries and museums to perform the
important services that they are dedicated to doing. (013)
There are other efforts to promote awareness of this problem.
http://eldred.cc/ (014)
Some efforts are underway to turn the dry topic of intellectual property
into a kind of cultural environmentalism that can be understand and
passionally endorsed by the average person.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/cc8e24ce-a242-11da-9096-0000779e2340.html (015)
It would behoove our community to act in a unified manner and start
discussing what can be done to improve the process in which software is
legally allowed to be preserved by the CHM, and other non-profit groups with
an interest in preservation of the software. (016)
Plan For Action (017)
I'd like to see a consolidated plan for action by members in our community. (018)
Here are a few first ideas that I'll put out. What ideas do others think we
can do to build a concrete plan of action? (019)
1. Attend the "Cultural Environmentalism" conference at Stanford, March
11-12.
http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/conferences/cultural/ (020)
Is anyone available to go to this? (021)
2. Engage the attention of one or more politicians to our predicament.
We need to make a much stronger connection with the people who we have
entrusted to write our laws. (022)
Do we have anyone in our community who knows any senators or representatives
personally? (023)
3. Within the CHM SCC, develop a process and best practices guidelines
(we can avoid the buzzwords though :-) for current and future projects
within the SCC to handle legal logistics for projects. (024)
People who have already worked on a number of projects can give valuable
input into the legal process they have undertaken. (025)
Does anyone have input they could give towards developing a standard
process? (026)
Jonathan
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