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The Case for Copyright Exceptions and Fair Use

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

For on January 17, 1984, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that consumers could tape their favorite TV shows and watch them later without the copyright holder’s consent. 417 (1984), also known as the “ Betamax case ”, is a landmark copyright precedent that has had enormous implications for the media economy. copyright law.

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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.

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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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The Road to Accessibility without Borders: Celebrating the One-Year Anniversary of the Marrakesh Treaty

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

One year ago, on June 28, 2013, at a diplomatic conference in Marrakesh, Morocco, the World Intellectual Property Organization ( WIPO ) agreed on a historic international copyright exception for people with print disabilities. a11y accessibility blind Bookshare copyright IP Marrakesh Treaty print disabilities visual impairment WIPO'

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We Have a Treaty…and It’s Great!

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

I’ve been actively advocating for an international copyright exception model that would greatly benefit people with disabilities, as anyone who has read my blog over the years can attest! copyright exception. After all, Benetech’s Bookshare initiative is the largest online library serving people with print disabilities in the world.

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What is in the Treaty of Marrakesh?

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

have been asking about the Treaty of Marrakesh (formal name: The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities. First, it makes creating a national domestic copyright exception an obligation of countries that ratify the Treaty. It does that in two main ways.

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

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

I believe it is a combination of copyright exceptions and business model innovations. For the content of books, this flexibility is expressed in ideas like public domain, when the copyright owned by the author or publisher ends at some point. Remember how crucial the Section 121 copyright exception was to creating Bookshare?