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About Bookshare.org |
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Legal Information A recently enacted exception in the U.S. copyright law makes Bookshare.org possible under the law in the United States, as long as the copyrighted digital books are only available to people with bona fide disabilities. The Bookshare.org site does not provide access to copyrighted works for the general public. Although the requirements of the copyright law exception are quite clear, Bookshare.org has gone beyond these requirements to ensure broad support for the project. We have been working with the Association of American Publishers, the main industry group, to address publishers' concerns in the design of the service. We are also working with the leading disability organizations, including the Library of Congress and Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic. With extensive input from consumers, publishers and leading organizations, we have created a plan for Bookshare.org that can be supported by a broad array of interests. Legal Requirements Bookshare.org is an online community that allows users with print disabilities to legally share books. It includes the necessary controls to protect against use by non-disabled persons. Bookshare.org meets the requirements of the relevant section of copyright law, 17 U.S.C. § 121: "... it is not an infringement of copyright for an authorized entity to reproduce or to distribute copies of a previously published, nondramatic literary work if such copies are reproduced or distributed in specialized formats exclusively for use by blind or other persons with disabilities."
As a project of the Benetech nonprofit organization, Bookshare.org meets the definition of an authorized entity. Bookshare.org is based on electronic Braille and digital talking book standards and copyright law recognizes these digital formats as specialized formats for the disabled. Braille books and four-track audio cassettes are the most commonly recognized specialized formats in use over the past thirty years. In addition, some publishers and authors have provided permission for books and other publications they provide in digital form to be made available in accessible digital formats to individuals with qualifying disabilities either just within the United States or worldwide. For more information, visit our Publisher and Author information page. The Seven Point Digital Rights Management Plan Bookshare.org makes active efforts to ensure that its collection and its users abide by the law to maximize the benefits realized by the disability community and minimize abuse. Bookshare.org controls the format of the materials that it provides and ensures the appropriate copyright notices are in its digital publications. Access is restricted to disabled individuals and other authorized entities. Digital rights management helps to ensure that access remains limited to those covered by the copyright law exemption.
Only blind or other persons with disabilities that affect their ability to access print are permitted to download copyrighted books. Bookshare.org follows the procedures and standards for access to books that is now in use by Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D). A Bookshare.org user must register and supply a signed certification completed by an appropriate professional in the field of disability services education, medicine, psychology or a related area. The certifier must be a recognized expert who can attest to the physical basis that limits the applicant's use of standard print. Appropriate certifying experts may differ from disability to disability. For example, in the case of blindness and visual impairments, an appropriate certifier may be a physician, ophthalmologist, or optometrist. In the case of a perceptual disability, a neurologist, learning disability specialist, or a psychologist with a background in learning disabilities may be the most qualified certifying professional. In addition, since any U.S. resident who has previously submitted their proof of disability to NLS (National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped of the Library of Congress) would qualify under the law, we have a cooperative agreement where NLS will certify to us that they have such proof already. All Bookshare.org users have to agree to terms of use that forbid violation of the copyright law restrictions on redistribution and use of copyrighted material. Users who violate these terms will lose their access to Bookshare.org and may suffer other legal consequences as a result of their actions. The AAP's general counsel and GCs from leading publishers had the opportunity to comment on these agreements and Bookshare.org made numerous changes in response to their concerns. In order to comply with the copyright law regulating the provision of accessible books to people with disabilities (17 U.S.C. § 121), Bookshare.org ensures that all copyrighted materials bear a notice that any further reproduction or distribution in a format other than a specialized format is an infringement. Such content includes a copyright notice identifying the copyright owner and the date of the original publication. In addition, there is other language reminding users of their obligations to use this material only as permitted by their agreements with Bookshare.org and the law. It also informs people who are not Bookshare.org users that their possession of a Bookshare.org digital book is a violation of the copyright law and that they should erase such a book without using or copying it. View the text of the Bookshare.org Legal Agreements. Bookshare.org encrypts a requested book for a given user. A custom decryption program is provided to each Bookshare.org customer. This program decrypts content delivered for that user only and saves the decrypted content to the specified DAISY or BRF (Braille) file. All copyrighted material downloaded is fingerprinted as part of the encryption process so that the identity of the authorized user is contained within the decrypted material in a difficult to find fashion. This way, if a user illegally redistributes material downloaded from Bookshare.org, it is possible to confirm both that the materials came from Bookshare.org and which user was responsible. All transaction, encryption codes and fingerprints are stored in a database enabling Bookshare.org to track any abuse to the source. Users are informed of the existence of this database as part of Bookshare.org's privacy program, and are informed of the limitations of the use of this data (it will only be used to respond to abuse problems, and not for marketing or other purposes). A security program monitors all transactions and will suspend any user whose account exhibits any excessive downloading of content or other unusual activity. This program will build usage profiles and over time will be strengthened through experience to flag potential abuse. For example, there will be an active effort to suspend accounts that show evidence of abuse. Copyright Infringement Complaints If you are a copyright owner, to report copyright infringement complaints, please follow the steps as outlined in the DMCA Policy (Digital Millennium Copyright Act). If you are not a copyright owner, and wish to report suspected abuse, please email abuse@bookshare.org. |
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Bookshare.org was created and is maintained by Benetech, a nonprofit organization, and is Bobby-approved. The Bookshare trademark is used under license from its registered owner, Follett Library Resources division of Follett Corporation. |
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