August
17, 2005
Google Print
Library Position 'Backwards': Copyright holder should not have to opt-out
TAA Immediate Past
President Michael Sullivan called Google's plan to give publishers and
other copyright holders the option of opting out of the company's Library
Print Project, which involves scanning a significant portion of five
major libraries and placing them on searchable servers around the world,
"backwards" and in conflict with both the spirit and the law of copyright.
"One of the tenets
of copyright law in the United States is to serve as a protection for
unauthorized reproduction and distribution of an author's intellectual
work product," he said. "The authority to grant reproduction or distribution
rights lies with the copyright holder, not with the person or organization
seeking to exploit the work."
Google is putting
the burden on publishers and other copyright holders to opt-out of having
their works digitized and placed in the online library, an "onerous
requirement" said Richard T. Hull, TAA's executive director, for authors
of textbooks and academic works, many of whom hold copyright to at least
some of their works, to have to contact Google in order to restrict
unauthorized exploitation of their copyrighted works for Google's private
benefit.
If Google wants
to make these copies, said Hull, it should seek permission and pay a
reasonable fee as anyone else would. "Authors and publishers have economic
interests that should not be circumvented," he said. "While we applaud
the general idea behind increasing access to our work, Google must respect
the interests of authors and publishers while pursuing its own. The
use that Google proposes is not an excused fair use in any recognized
sense of the doctrine."
Sullivan said that
while TAA supports access to copyrighted works, it firmly upholds the
position that only the copyright holder can authorize the type of access
that Google seeks.
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New E-book Program
Combats Used Books
A pilot project
spearheaded by wholesale used book distributor MBS Textbook Exchange
will offer e-books alongside print textbooks in 10 college bookstores
this fall. Books from eight major textbook publishers will be sold in
downloadable form for 33 percent less than a print copy. This is the
first time e-books have been sold in college bookstores. Previously,
e-books were sold directly from the publisher. Small credit card-size
cards will be placed next to print texts at the bookstore, offering
a discount for purchasing the e-book version. Once students purchase
the cards they are encoded to allow them to download the e-book onto
their computer. Anti-piracy protections, such as the ability to download
the book to only one computer, and an expiration date, prevent them
from being resold into the used textbook market.
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Copyright Protection
for E-books
CyberKey Corporation
has created a new industry-specific marketing division, Giga-Books "USB"
Division, that will focus on the electronic delivery of text and software.
They have initiated discussions with several publishers interested in
distributing their books via Giga-Books' secure USB flash memory device,
which has a proprietary 18 digit encoded serial number that provides
publishers with the means to identify authorized e-book owners and "lock"
lost or stolen CyberKey devices. Publishers can selectively withhold
updates and and access to video portions of an e-book based on the serial
number assigned each CyberKey, protecting their copyright. Read more
about CyberKey at www.cyberkeycorp.com
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McGraw-Hill Offers
E-books
McGraw-Hill Higher
Education is partnering with digital publisher Zinio to provide 150
of its college titles as electronic books. The e-books are an exact
replica of the print text, complete with pages that can be "turned,"
text that can be highlighted, and notes that can be easily inserted.
The e-books also offer full-text search capability, web links, audio,
video and archiving. Pages can be printed in high resolution and full
color. Students will be able to download the book from the Zinio website:
http://textbooks.zinio.com
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TAA Convention
Receives High Marks
The majority of
those attending the 2005 TAA Convention in Las Vegas this June gave
the convention high marks. Most of the sessions were given an excellent
or good rating. One attendee called it "a very good convention for newbies
and veterans." Another attendee said "I learned a lot at this conference
both from the sessions and from talking to experienced authors." One
attendee said he enjoyed the banquet: "It was nice to meet authors whose
books I had used or reviewed."
For rest of article:
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Award-winning
Author Shares Tips
Marilyn "Winkie"
Fordney, author or co-author of more than 50 books in three different
medical career fields, shares some authoring tips.
Download her PDF:
Click
here to Members Only section
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Journal Editor
Shares Advice on Getting Articles Published
Don't get discouraged
because your journal article is rejected, said Jay Black, editor of
the Journal of Mass Media Ethics and professor of journalism ethics
at the University of South Florida during a TAA Convention panel, "An
Insider's Guide to Getting Your Scholarly Articles Published."
"Your correspondence with editors should be enough to let you know
where to go with it next," he said. "Even worse is to shelve
a 'revise and resubmit' request from an editor. The fact that they asked
you to resubmit means that they see quality there and want to work with
you."
For rest of article:
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to Members Only section
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Make a Gift to
the TAA Foundation to Support Research on Textbook Author Diversity
The TAA Foundation
is asking for donations from members towards a $15,000 matching grant
from TAA. For every $1 you donate, TAA will match it. For example, your
donation of $25 will become $50. All gifts are tax-deductible. To make
a donation to the TAA Foundation, contact Janet Tucker at TAA headquarters
at (727) 563-0020 or mail your donation to TAA Foundation c/o TAA, P.O.
Box 76477, St. Petersburg, FL 33737-6477.
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New TAA Fax Number
TAA headquarters
switched its phone system over to a new broadband system. The phone
number will remain the same, but the new fax number is (727) 230-2409.
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2006 TAA Convention:
New Orleans
The 2006 TAA Convention
will be held in New Orleans July 7 and 8. Chris Harris will serve as
convention chair.
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