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Reply Comments on the Proposed Treaty for Access to Copyrighted Works

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

We filed the following comments to the Copyright Office's request for comments on issues about access for people with print disabilities. Many of the comments critical of the proposed treaty come from parties that object in principle to copyright exceptions, rather than having a direct stake in the issue at hand.

Copyright 158
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Fair Use Victory Advances a Future of Accessibility for All

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

HathiTrust, a unanimous three-judge panel concluded that digitizing books in order to enhance research and provide access to individuals with print disabilities is lawful on the grounds of fair use —that is, a limitation and exception to the exclusive rights granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work ( Section 107 of the U.S.

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Accessibility Excitement in Geneva

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

There was also an associated effort called the Trusted Intermediary Global Accessible Resources (TIGAR) project, to ease the exchange of accessible book files between libraries for the blind and print disabled. This meeting in Geneva was on the form of a successor project, dubbed the Accessible Book Consortium ("ABC," of course).

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Advancing Reading Equality with Bookshare’s Exponential Growth

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

I’m thrilled to share with you some of the recent amazing impact of Bookshare , a Benetech Global Literacy initiative and the largest accessible online library of copyrighted content for people with print disabilities. Bookshare titles range from vocational to research to teacher-recommended reading.

Literacy 129
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Bringing Millions of Books to Billions of People: Making the Book Truly Accessible

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

It’s of course this last capability, flexibility, that is so powerful for people with disabilities. We can use the same ebook file to deliver the content ten different ways. I believe it is a combination of copyright exceptions and business model innovations. I love to hark back to Thomas Jefferson’s take on ideas. “He

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eBooks #2: So you want to e-publish? Mechanics…

Zen and the Art of Nonprofit Technology

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to do to get my novels out in the world, and have been greatly influenced by Cory Doctorow in terms of copyright (or, more accurately, copyleft ). You can either upload a.doc or.docx file, or a mobipocket format file. that are standard for eBooks.

eBook 168
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I Need a Good Lawyer

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

We’re operating at the forefront of copyright limitations and exceptions, both in the United States and globally. Of course, part of the role is the bread-and-butter work of a nonprofit GC: day-to-day transactions, reviewing our 990, providing counsel to our senior team and board. Authors Guild vs. HathiTrust. What’s next?