Publishers, Internet Archive Submit Proposed Judgment in Copyright Case

The Internet Archive and major publishers have reached a negotiated judgment regarding the archive’s "controlled digital lending" program, cementing a previous ruling that unauthorized scanning and lending of copyrighted books constitutes infringement. This agreement establishes a permanent injunction barring the archive from distributing unauthorized digital copies of commercially available e-books while the appeal is pending. The parties also agreed to a confidential monetary settlement covering legal costs, contingent upon the publishers ultimately prevailing in the appellate process. This resolution is highly relevant to open data and open access advocates because it significantly restricts the concept of "first-sale" rights in the digital realm. By ruling that owning a physical copy does not grant the right to create and distribute a digital replacement, the decision limits how institutions can provide remote access to licensed materials. The narrow scope of the injunction, which only applies to books already available in digital formats, leaves the broader legal status of digitizing exclusively print-available works unresolved, creating uncertainty for library digitization projects and open archival initiatives. Despite this setback, the Internet Archive intends to appeal, maintaining that libraries must preserve and lend digital books outside of restrictive licensing models. Concurrently, the archive faces new litigation from record labels regarding its "Great 78" audio preservation project, suggesting a wider trend of legal challenges against non-profit digital archives. These cases highlight the growing tension between traditional copyright enforcement and the mission of digital repositories to ensure long-term preservation and public access to cultural heritage.

Source: publishersweekly.com
Published on 2023-08-15

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