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Praise for Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers

By Unlimited Priorities on January 21, 2015 in Unlimited Priorities News

Publishing Quarterly Research Provides Critical Review

Cape Coral, FL (January 21, 2015) – Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers, an eBook geared specifically toward copyright issues faced by the publishing community, is the recipient of an outstanding review in Publishing Research Quarterly, an international forum for the publication of original peer-reviewed papers offering significant research and analyses on the full range of the publishing industry. This review was published online 21 October 2014 _ Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014.

Authored by Laura N. Gasaway, Paul B. Eaton Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and published by Unlimited Priorities LLC^®, a firm specializing in support for small and medium-size companies in the information and publishing industries, Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers posits that copyright is the lifeblood of publishers and provides a basic knowledge of copyright law crucial to the publishing community.

Daniel J. Gross is an attorney and in-house counsel at Myers Wolin LLC, an intellectual property law firm. In his review he writes that in a rapidly shifting publishing environment “…publishers do not always have a legal department to advise them on contract and copyright issues. Some don’t even have staff. It is critical that these publishers understand the rules of the game they are choosing to play—no matter how much they minimize their overhead. It is in this context that Laura Gasaway’s Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers shines—as a clear and concise rulebook for the game publishers choose to play.”

Discussing the book’s arrangement Mr. Gross observes: “While maintaining a narrow focus on copyright issues relevant to publishers, there is impressive depth within that focus. Gasaway deftly handles topics, such as reversions and terminations, which are critical to publishers but not fully understood by even seasoned lawyers outside of her specialty. Throughout each chapter, headings point publishers to topics and keywords they should be aware of, even if they need not fully digest the discussion provided.” As to critical issues “… Gasaway provides a narrative and allows publishers to gauge the depth of understanding they require. If further information is needed, she points publishers to resources beyond the scope of the book through thorough referencing.”

Regarding the subject of litigation Mr. Gross points out that “Gasaway wisely advises publishers on avoiding litigation. Particularly in the age of micro- and self-publication, a lawsuit could devastate companies just starting out.” However, he does go on to say that “…a good lawyer should work with the publisher to control costs, while improving the likelihood of achieving their goals.”

Mr. Gross concludes that Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers is “…a tremendously useful reference for publishers. Many of the books on my shelf are treatises, and a book covering similar scope may span three inches of real estate. This book limits its thickness to a mere fraction of an inch by maintaining a consistent focus on aspects of the law relevant to publishers, while outsourcing additional information through references. Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers provides a crucial book of rules, allowing publishers to painlessly become acquainted with the basics and seamlessly access further information when needed.”

About Unlimited Priorities

Unlimited Priorities LLC provides unique solutions to the wide variety of challenges facing both commercial and not-for-profit entities throughout the information community. From sales and marketing support to administrative and production issues, we offer effective resolutions. By integrating the diversified talents of our highly skilled group of professionals from all fields into their organizational structures, Unlimited Priorities provides clients with the flexibility to successfully attain their specific goals in a systematic and efficient manner while optimizing their financial and personnel resources.

Contact

Iris L. Hanney, President
Unlimited Priorities LLC^®
239-549-2384
iris.hanney@unlimitedpriorities.com
www.unlimitedpriorities.com

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NISO & The Future of eTextbooks

By Unlimited Priorities on September 24, 2014 in Blog

NISO (National Information Standards Organization) hosted a two-part webinar on Sept. 10 and 17. E-books for Education explored definitions, content, access, and open access (OA) issues affecting the present state and future course of ebooks for education.

NISO “identifies, develops, maintains, and publishes technical standards to manage information in our changing and ever-more digital environment. NISO standards apply both traditional and new technologies to the full range of information-related needs, including retrieval, re-purposing, storage, metadata, and preservation.” It is time, it seems, to apply some technical standards to etextbooks.

Visit this Information Today Newsbreak for Woody Evans report on the webinar.

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Copyright Guide Table of Contents

By Unlimited Priorities on August 13, 2014 in Unlimited Priorities News

Copyright law can be confusing…

Authored by Laura N. Gasaway, Paul B. Eaton Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Pocket Copyright Guide for Publishers helps alleviate this problem.

Each chapter covers a specific topic including basics of copyright law; registration; assignments and transfers; granting and obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted works; the use photographs, audiovisual works and other materials from websites; exceptions to copyright, such as fair use; licensing and collective rights societies; the digital environment; enforcement of copyright; international aspects of copyright; and industry trends.

Copyright basics — Requirements for obtaining a copyright, what is eligible for protection, authorship, works for hire, ownership, duration of copyright, exclusive rights of the copyright owner, the rights a publisher must have, what constitutes infringement, damages, etc.
Registration of copyrights, assignments and transfers – Importance of copyright registration, how to register a work, obtaining assignments from the author or other copyright holder, transfers of copyright and recordation of transfers. What happens to the copyright upon the death of the author, dealing with copyright heirs, and terminations of copyright after the statutory period for licenses expires.
Permissions (seeking and granting) – How to seek permission to use copyrighted works in compilations and other works, the utility of establishing a system for granting permission for use of works for which the company holds copyright, and orphan works,
Using photographs, music, audiovisual works and other nonprint materials from websites – Difficulties in determining the copyright status of these works, how to seek and document permissions, disclaimers, royalty free images, and decisions to use works without permission.
Exceptions to copyright protection: first sale, fair use, educational and library uses – Understanding fair use, first sale and other statutory exceptions to the Copyright Act, considering whether to grant greater rights to use works to certain institutions and individuals.
Licensing and collective rights societies – Overview of major collective rights societies, determining whether to join a collective rights society, royalties, and Creative Commons licenses.
The digital environment – Unique copyright problems the digital environment has created for publishers, necessary grant of rights, institutional repositories and open archives, and mass digitization cases.
Enforcing copyrights – How publishers can enforce their rights without litigation, liability, criminal infringement, remedies and defenses, and license violations.
International aspects – Protecting copyrights internationally, and whether to be concerned about such protection.
Trends – What publishers may expect as predicted by recent litigation and Congressional action and discussions, and operation of law trends.

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OverDrive and ALA Prove Library Borrowers Are Also Buyers

By Unlimited Priorities on November 24, 2012 in Blog

An extensive online poll of library ebook readers (PDF) finds that library patrons purchase an average of 3.2 books (both print and ebooks) each month, and a majority would consider purchasing books discovered on a library website.

Ebook borrowers, who are at OverDrive-powered public library websites in the U.S., also report that their digital content purchases have increased in the past 6 months. Sponsored by OverDrive with the American Library Association’s Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP), the survey constitutes the largest study of library ebook usage to date, with more than 75,000 people responding.

Confirming earlier studies, such as the Pew Internet Project’s “Libraries, Patrons, and E-books,” the survey found that a significant percentage of library users regularly purchase books they first discover at the library. In fact, 57% of those surveyed said that the public library is their primary source of book discovery.

Read on at New Findings Reaffirm Library Borrowers Are Also Buyers.

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Pew Releases Study on Younger Americans’ Reading and Library Habits

By Unlimited Priorities on October 23, 2012 in Blog

More than eight in ten Americans between the ages of 16 and 29 read a book in the past year, and six in ten used their local public library. At the youngest end of the spectrum, high schoolers in their late teens (ages 16-17) and college-aged young adults (ages 18-24) are especially likely to have read a book or used the library in the past 12 months. And although their library usage patterns may often be influenced by the requirements of school assignments, their interest in the possibilities of mobile technology may also point the way toward opportunities of further engagement with libraries later in life. Continue Reading →

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Indiana University makes e-textbooks mandatory in pilot program

By Unlimited Priorities on August 21, 2012 in Blog

Indiana University was the first college to pilot a program that requires its students to buy the e-textbook in certain courses. In Indiana’s program, students are charged for the books through their bursar accounts, so they don’t have the option of not buying the book. This bulk purchasing and 100% buy-in by students lets the university negotiate lower prices with publishing companies.

Indiana University says it is ahead of other universities when it comes to saving money on textbooks the 2012-2013 school year.

e-Textbooks can save students money

Hundreds of classes at the Bloomington college will use new high-tech, lower cost e-books.

Indiana University figures a typical student’s book bill totals about $1,000.

To save students and offer them new educational opportunities, Indiana University created this first-of-its-kind electronic alternative to textbooks.

“Their net textbook bill should go down a third to a half over time,” said Indiana University vice president for information technology Brad Wheeler.

It would shave thousands of dollars off the cost of going to college for each student.

E-textbooks are available in two basic flavors. Some e-textbooks are available only while online (material is accessed directly via the internet connection). Others allow you to download the e-textbook to your computer or tablet for use while not connected to the internet. Often, access to downloadable e-textbooks is limited to one computer, while online-viewable versions are able to be accessed from any computer.

Learn more at Switch to e-books helps IU students save money.

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One-fifth of American adults have read an e-book in the past year

By Al Stevens on April 6, 2012 in Blog

And that number is growing rapidly.

The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project has just released a report showing that increasing availability of e-content is prompting some to read more than in the past and to prefer buying books to borrowing them. Furthermore, the people reading e-books are avid readers of books in all formats: 88% of those who read e-books in the past 12 months also read printed books.

The report documents the growing popularity of e-books and the adoption of specialized e-book reading devices. Most of the findings in this report come from a survey of 2,986 Americans ages 16 and older, conducted on November 16-December 21, 2011, that focused on e-reading and people’s habits and preferences.

Key findings include:

A fifth of American adults have read an e-book in the past year and the number of e-book readers grew after a major increase in ownership of e-book reading devices and tablet computers during the holiday gift-giving season.
The average reader of e-books says she has read 24 books (the mean number) in the past 12 months, compared with an average of 15 books by a non-e-book consumer.
30% of those who read e-content say they now spend more time reading, and owners of tablets and e-book readers particularly stand out as reading more now.
The prevalence of e-book reading is markedly growing, but printed books still dominate the world of book readers.
E-book reading happens across an array of devices, including smartphones.
In a head-to-head competition, people prefer e-books to printed books when they want speedy access and portability, but print wins out when people are reading to children and sharing books with others.
The availability of e-content is an issue to some. Of the 43% of Americans who consumed e-books in the last year or have read other long-form content on digital devices, a majority say they find the e-content is available in the format they want. Yet 23% say they find the material they are seeking “only sometimes,” “hardly ever,” or never available in the format they want.
The majority of book readers prefer to buy rather than borrow.

The entire report is here: The rise of e-reading.

With e-content growing and e-readers becoming so prevalent, it is even more important to ensure that content is available in appropriate electronic format under terms that make it available to the consumers who want it.

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Join us at the London Book Fair, April 16 – 18

By Unlimited Priorities on April 2, 2012 in Blog

Unlimited Priorities will be at the London Book Fair.

Now in its 41st year, The London Book Fair continues to be the global market place for rights negotiation and the sales and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film and digital channels.

With over 400 seminars and events, 1,500 international exhibiting companies and 24,500 publishing professionals, The London Book Fair encompasses the broad spectrum of the publishing industry.

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Will You Miss Paper?

By Richard Oppenheim on January 30, 2012 in Blog

The marketing of a paperless world dates back to the last century. With no further reference to the gag line about a “paperless bathroom,” what has been impacting our worlds is the onrush of digital everything taking over the publishing of magazines, newspapers and books.

Early in 2012, discussions and announcements are raising everyone’s focus towards the rise of digital reading material with a decline in paper based printing. These are indicators that need to be assessed by anyone in the process of either doing research or the process of creating research materials. The world of digital will increase both the volume of researchable material and the accessibility to far distant data that can be located anywhere. Researchers will not have to travel the Library at Alexandria to immerse themselves in knowledge and information. Here are three recent indicators about the move from paper to non-paper:

Apple expands its volume of digital textbooks to be read on the iPad Tablet. WSJ 1/20/12

Exchanging an overweight backpack filled with text books for a Tablet computer will help shoulders, spines, and knees to survive High School, College and Grad Schools. Apple developed a new version of its iBook’s Apps that support textbooks. These digital versions will include quizzes, note-taking, study cards and other interactive features.

Currently, Apple has agreements with McGraw-Hill, Pearson, with titles from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt to be announced soon. Textbooks will be sold for $14.99 or less. Eventually, Apple said, it expects textbooks for almost every subject and grade level.

Apple also released a free tool for authors to create interactive titles. Consequently, authors of research material can start to focus on how to re-engineer how a book can be used as flexible learning tools rather than sequential page after page.

Amazon Wants to Burn The Book Business – Bloomberg Business Week – 1/30/2012

Librarian and NPR commentator, Nancy Pearl, is assisting Amazon Publishing to launch a new series called, “Book Lust Rediscoveries.” Pearl will select a handful of out-of-print books each year to be republished by Amazon in both print and digital formats.

The original text of each book will be augmented with an introduction by Pearl, reading group discussion questions and a list of recommended further reading. Books will be available in print and for Kindle: With a modest first budget of only six books per year, Amazon will be very careful with market reaction to this new service. Audio books, eBooks and paper is an ambitious undertaking for literature that may or may not find a readership. The is multi-format opportunity will also impact schools and libraries as to what their users want to obtain.

New York Times has display booth at CES

The legendary newspaper is still publishing its print edition every day. Many New Yorkers cannot make it from to Monday without the Sunday Times. For a while the Times has provided a digital version of the newspaper. With all the flight to digital, here was “The Old Gray Lady” that has been published since 1851, appealing to on-line readers. Currently the newspaper has over 30 million views of their website each month. Print subscribers have declined to one million.

As in all digital selling there was a come-on to get 6 months for 1/2 price. The grandest newspaper recognizes that readership demands access through phones, tables and other computing devices.

Whether the user or the provider, you need to plan how your research will be accomplished and expanded over the next few years. Check in with Unlimited Priorities for a very valuable conversation about the digital publication universe.

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