[Apologies for cross-posting]
The message below is being circulated on behalf of the Museums Copyright Group which is negotiating a blanket digitisation licensing scheme with DACS, the Design and Artists Copyright Society, to allow digitisation of artistic works in collections in museums, archives and libraries and the making available of the digitised images for cultural and educational use. As I've been away and off lists I don't know how widely this information has already circulated since first announced in the MLA News Ebulletin of 11th August <http://www.mla.gov.uk/news/snippets.asp?month=8&year=2005#839> http://www.mla.gov.uk/news/snippets.asp?month=8&year=2005#839. My apologies if you have already had a similar message from another source - if so, please take this as a gentle reminder.
Barbara Stratton
Senior Adviser, Copyright at CILIP
Secretary to LACA: The Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance
CILIP, 7 Ridgmount Street, London WC1E 7AE
Tel: +44 (0)20 7255 0500 Fax: +44 (0)20 7255 0501 Textphone: +44 (0)20 7255 0505
General e-mail: <mailto:[log in to unmask]> [log in to unmask] Web: <http://www.cilip.org.uk> www.cilip.org.uk LACA Web Site: <http://www.cilip.org.uk/laca> www.cilip.org.uk/laca
Proposed digital licensing scheme for cultural organisations
Digital management of copyright material is increasingly relevant to museums, archives and libraries. For some projects, ranging from large scale digitisation programmes to one-off website projects, it is absolutely critical to delivering the project's objectives. Copyright law currently gives cultural organisations virtually no lee-way, which means that the cost of copyright research and clearance activity can be huge and occasionally prohibitive.
The Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) has funded the Museums Copyright Group (MCG) to explore with the Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS) the possibility of a blanket licensing scheme. MCG is leading discussions with DACS with the support of ARLIS- the Art Libraries Society and with the endorsement of LACA: the Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance. The aim of the proposed licence is to allow digitisation of artistic works in collections in museums, archives and libraries and digital copies to be made available to staff, students and the public. 'Artistic works' are defined as graphic works (any painting, drawing, diagram, map, chart or plan; any engraving, etching, lithograph, woodcut or similar work), photographs, sculptures, collages and works of artistic craftsmanship. This includes engineering drawings and architectural drawings, casts or models made for sculptural purposes and models for buildings.
MLA, the MCG and DACS need your help in providing information to take those discussions forward. A simple questionnaire has been designed which is accessible for on-line completion at: <http://www.museumscopyright.org.uk/question.htm> http://www.museumscopyright.org.uk/question.htm
Further information about the proposals is provided in the questionnaire which will be available for completion until 30th September 2005. We would be grateful if you or the relevant person in your organisation could spare us a little time to complete the questionnaire. This will provide extremely valuable information about digital copyright management issues in the cultural sector that will inform the development of schemes and policies to make life easier for museums, galleries, archives and libraries.
Thank you.
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