AT ISSUE: Authorship Law & Policy

We provide education and advocacy (within the limits of our status as a public charity) for sound policies that help authors create their works, make them accessible to the public, and ensure their preservation. Our Principles and Proposals for Copyright Reform, a founding document for Authors Alliance, continues to guide our policy work today.

To advocate for these goals, Authors Alliance has submitted amicus briefs in support of fair use and authors’ rights. In addition, we regularly engage with the U.S. Copyright Office on a variety of issues, including the DMCA and moral rights.

2021:

  • Comments to South Africa’s Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry in support of copyright exceptions in the draft Copyright Amendment Bill
  • Joint letter to Congress on the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act
  • Response to post-hearing questions from the U.S. Copyright Office related to a new exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA to enable text and data mining research
  • Comments to the U.S. Copyright Office on regulations to govern the Copyright Claims Board
  • Joint letter to incoming United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai on promoting balanced copyright policy
  • Reply Comments to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of a new exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA to enable text and data mining research
  • Letter to Senator Tillis on the draft Digital Copyright Act of 2021

2020:

  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of a new exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA to enable text and data mining research
  • Letter to Senator Tillis on DMCA Reform
  • Letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee on the copyright small claims dispute provisions in the Online Content Policy Modernization Act
  • Petition to the U.S. Copyright Office for a new exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA to enable text and data mining research
  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office on modernizing recordation of notices of termination
  • Petition to renew renew multimedia e-book exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA
  • Reply Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office on the meaning of “publication” in the online context
  • Statement on Publisher lawsuit against the Internet Archive
  • Comment to the Office of Science and Technology Policy supporting immediate access to federally funded research
  • Public Input to the Librarian of Congress on the next Register of Copyrights
  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office on the meaning of “publication” in the online context

2019:

  • Statement in support of immediate access to federally funded research
  • Presentation to the World Intellectual Property (WIPO) Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR/39) supporting statutory termination rights and stronger reversionary rights in contracts
  • Statement to the World Intellectual Property (WIPO) Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR/39) on the benefits to authors of reasonable limitations and exceptions
  • Letter to the House Committee on the Judiciary on the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019 (“CASE Act”)
  • Statement on the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019 (“CASE Act”)
  • Comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of registration modernization

2018:

  • Brief to Canada’s Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology urging the retention of reversionary rights in Canada’s Copyright Act and recommending amendments to the provision
  • Statement to the World Intellectual Property (WIPO) Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR/37) on how reasonable limitations and exceptions to copyright for education benefit authors
  • Endorsement of Position Statement on Controlled Digital Lending for Libraries
  • Comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of a differentiated fee schedule to accommodate all authors
  • Comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of mandatory deposit of electronic-only books
  • Joint letter to U.S. Copyright Office explaining why screen capture is not a sufficient alternative to circumvention
  • Statement to the World Intellectual Property (WIPO) Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR/36) on the benefits to authors of reasonable limitations and exceptions to copyright for libraries, archives, and museums; education; and for persons with disabilities
  • Letter to South Africa’s Members of Parliament in support of introducing a termination of transfer provision into South Africa’s copyright laws
  • Joint statement to Senate Judiciary and Foreign Relations Committees in support of the passage of the Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act
  • Reply comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of a modified exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA

2017:

  • Comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of a modified exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA
  • Petition for a new, expanded multimedia e-book exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA
  • Joint letter to NAFTA negotiators in support of transparency and balanced copyright policy
  • Petition to renew multimedia e-book exemption to Section 1201 of the DMCA
  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of modernizing recordation
  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of creators’ rights to integrity and attribution
  • Amicus brief in Cambridge University Press v. Albert in support of fair use
  • Comment to the House Judiciary Committee on proposed reforms to the U.S. Copyright Office

2016:

  • Comment to U.S. Copyright Office in support of DMCA exemptions for print-disabled readers
  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of reforming the DMCA exemption process

2015:

  • Comment to the U.S. Copyright Office urging reconsideration of extended collective licensing
  • Comment in support of DMCA exemption for multimedia e-books

2014:

  • Petition to the U.S. Copyright Office seeking DMCA exemption for multimedia e-books
  • Amicus brief in Authors Guild v. Google Books in support of fair use