Internet Archive removes controls on “lending” of bootleg e-books

Using the coronavirus pandemic as an excuse, the Internet Archive has — without permission or payment — removed all limits on how many people can simultaneously “borrow” digital copies of some of its bootleg e-book editions scanned from printed books. Included in this co-called National Digital Library are bootleg e-book editions of 1.4 million books, […]

NWU and APA call for changes to copyright registration rules

The NWU and American Photographic Artists (APA) called on the Copyright Office and Congress in March 2020 to reform requirements for copyrighting works published or made available online.  Though intended for writers’ and visual artists’ to protect their works without excessive “formalities,” the US Copyright Act is still requiring authors to register each of their works, […]

NWU 3-Year Term on IFRRO Board Ends

The election of new members of the Board of Directors of the International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organizations (IFRRO) at IFRRO’s World Congress in Edinburgh, Scotland, earlier this months marked the conclusion of my three-year term, to which I was nominated by the NWU and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), as the sole member […]

House of Representatives Passes Copyright Small Claims Bill

On October 22, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the “Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019” (CASE Act), H.R. 2426, by a vote of 410 to 6: https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/2426 The NWU along with many creators’ groups and the member organizations of the Authors Coalition of America  endorsed the CASE Act. The NWU submitted detailed […]

Copyright Office brushes off our call for “moral rights” legislation

Rejecting recommendations from the National Writers Union (NWU) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the US Copyright Office has ended a two-year policy study by concluding that no significant new legislation is called for to protect authors’ moral rights to attribution (bylines or credit as authors) and to the integrity of our works. The […]

How writers monetize words: The marketplaces for writing in digital formats

The Internet is often depicted as a threat to traditional print publishing and traditional print publishers — which it is. But the Internet has also created many new digital publishing and income opportunities for tech-savvy, innovative, and entrepreneurial writers. This includes ways to make money from business models and types of writing that would be […]

Response to our appeal and FAQ from proponents of “Controlled Digital Lending”

There’s been no direct response from the Internet Archive in the month since the NWU and dozens of other organizations launched our campaign against so-called Controlled Digital Lending (CDL). Unauthorized scanning and distribution of digital copies of printed books continues, unchecked. The defenders of CDL have, however, posted their own new FAQ which is obviously […]

NWU and allies urge easier, cheaper copyright registration for online work

The NWU and National Press Photographers Association filed written comments yesterday with the US Copyright Office to create a new procedure to register multiple written works first distributed online. The intent is that the collection of works can be registered for a single fee and with a single application. This proposalwas made in response to a petition initiated by the […]

NWU denounces “Controlled Digital Lending”

National Writers Union calls for dialogue with libraries on Internet Archive book scanning Today the National Writers Union (UAW Local 1981, AFL-CIO) joins authors and contributors to books from around the world to denounce the scanning and distribution of complete copies of hundreds of thousands of books by the Internet Archive and its library “partners” […]