Archive for September 2004
ALA Holds Satellite Conference on Copyright
The American Library Association’s Office for Information Technology Policy and the Network of Illinois Learning Resources in Community Colleges is co-sponsoring a free, live satellite teleconference program on the complex copyright and intellectual property issues affecting libraries and schools.
The teleconference, Making Copyright Work For Your Library, will occur Friday, September 24, from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm EST. The program will feature leading copyright experts, including
Carrie Russell, copyright specialist in ALA’s Washington Office, and Kenneth Crews, professor at the Indiana University School of Law and author of Copyright Essentials for Librarians and Educators (2003).
The speakers will provide their views of the key issues facing librarians and educators, including copyright basics, an overview of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, fair use, copyright issues with electronic reserves and course management, and the TEACH Act.
To register for this free program, call toll-free at (800) 354-6587 or go to http://www.cod.edu/teleconf.
Groups Seek Public Hearings on Induce Act
“Today, EFF joined a broad coalition of public interest and industry groups in sending a strong message (.pdf) to Congress regarding the highly controversial Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act (S. 2560): Slow down.”
Electronic Frontier Foundation. Broad Coalition to Congress on Induce Act: Whoa There! Not So Fast. Deep Links. Sept. 17, 2004.
See also:
Public Knowledge. Public Knowledge Joins Widespread Opposition to Copyright Legislation. Sept. 17, 2004.
Public Knowledge. Public Knowledge Statement on Copyright Office Draft Legislation. Sept. 10, 2004.
Public Knowledge. Resource Room for the Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act of 2004.
Mandatory HTML Tags Would Protect Kids Online
"On the day before its summer vacation, the US Supreme Court freed Internet porn. The First Amendment, the Court held, prevents the government from regulating online speech if it can’t prove that ‘less restrictive alternatives’ – like software filters – would be less effective than regulation.
"Yet in light of other decisions affecting freedom on the Internet over the past six years, there’s something astonishing about the finding nonetheless.
"For why does the First Amendment speak so forcefully to protect pornographers yet barely whisper when librarians or film restorers complain that copyright regulates their speech, too?
Lawrence Lessig. Porn Free. Wired. September, 2004.
XM Radio to Launch Internet Radio Station
"Satellite radio operator XM Radio on Wednesday announced plans to launch an online music service.
"The Washington, D.C.-based company said the service, dubbed XM Radio Online will launch sometime in early October and operate commercial-free, just as its satellite programming does. XM will charge $7.99 per month for unlimited listening and offer a discount rate of $3.99 to subscribers of its existing radio services.
"The company’s main business is a commercial-free radio service that’s used with its portable satellite radio receivers, which are designed for use in homes and cars."
Matt Hines. XM Radio Tunes In Online Music Service. News.com. Sept. 15, 2004.
Yahoo! Acquires Musicmatch Online Jukebox
"In a move to expand its role in the online music business, Yahoo announced yesterday that it would buy Musicmatch, a company that sells music online, for $160 million.
"The move puts Yahoo in direct competition with Apple Computer’s iTunes, Microsoft’s new music store and RealNetworks in the small but growing market for online downloads of music.
"’Music is one of the most-used applications on the Web,’ said Dan Rosensweig, Yahoo’s chief operating officer. ‘Our objective is to be the leading player in the digital music world.’"
Saul Hansell. Yahoo to Challenge iTunes With New Acquisition. The New York Times. Sept. 15, 2004.
See also:
Matt Hines. Yahoo to Buy Musicmatch for $160 million. News.com. Sept. 14, 2004.
Jefferson Graham. Yahoo Breaks into Music with Musicmatch Purchase. TechNewsWorld. Sept. 15, 2004.
Update: John Borland. Yahoo to Launch its Own Music Player. News.com. Sept. 17, 2004. (Yahoo is planning on launching its own online music service by the end of this year, using Musicmatch’s customers to approach separate audiences.)
(Editor�s Note: The Times allows free access to their stories on the Web for seven days before sending the stories to the paper�s fee-based Archive.)
Don’t Share
"A danger with the goal of knowledge sharing is that it quickly shifts the KM team into ‘solutions mode.’ For example, knowledge sharing initiatives may focus on implementing a new expertise directory, or on improving collaboration tools. While these solutions may be potentially useful, if they don’t meet specific business needs they won’t be widely used.
"To avoid these issues, it is recommended that ‘knowledge sharing’ not be discussed beyond the confines of the KM team."
James Robertson. ‘Knowledge Sharing’ Should Be Avoided. CM Briefing. Sept. 3, 2004.
Vermont Librarian Speaks Up
"Jessmyn West is a 36-year-old librarian living in central Vermont. But she’s not your stereotypical bespectacled research maven toiling behind a reference desk and offering expert advice on microfiche.
She’s a ‘radical librarian’ who has embraced the hacker credo that ‘information wants to be free.’ As a result, West and many of her colleagues are on the front lines in battling the USA Patriot Act, which a harried Congress passed a month after 9/11 even though most representatives hadn’t even read the 300-page bill. It gave the government sweeping powers to pursue the ‘war on terror’ but at a price: the loss of certain types of privacy we have long taken for granted.
"What got many librarians’ dander up was Section 215 of the law, which stipulates that government prosecutors and FBI agents can seek permission from a secret court created under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to access personal records — everything from medical histories to reading habits. They don’t need a subpoena. In fact, they don’t need to show that a crime has even been committed. And librarians, stymied by a gag order, are forbidden to tell anyone (except a lawyer)."
Adam L. Penenberg. Don’t Mess With Librarians. WiredNews. Sept. 15, 2004.
COPYCENSE 