UK 'Copyright' Review 2011 - 2012

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Copyright and the UK ?

The final consultation on UK Copyright- including Education Exceptions and Personal Study - has been published by the UK IP Office. This is a major opportunity for the schools and education sector to make its needs known and help effect useful cahnge for all learners. The NEN is developing it's responses. The consultation closes 21st March 2012.  Links to the Consultation documents on the UK IP Office website are at foot of this article.

The Independent Review of Intellectual Property and Copyright in the UK by Professor Ian Hargreaves was initiated by the Prime Minster in June 2010. The government accepted all 10 of its recommendations for further consultation and development with enactment by parliament envisaged in 2012.

The NEN responded to the consultation emphasising that in its view:

  • Copyright, in its current form, could be a barrier to learning and teaching in the digital age
  • The current framework of 'Fair Dealing' and 'Exceptions' needed updating
  • Technological advances and their use meant that it is inevitable that copyright would have to become platform and medium 'neutral'
  • US 'Fair Use' provided a more coherent framework for teaching about copyright and IP

The Review was published on 18th May 2011 under the title 'Digital Opportunity - a Review of Intellectual Property and Growth' and, if it is implemented, it could have, important effects for learning, teaching and management in school education.

Amongst the recommendations are:

  • Permit format shifting for 'personal use'.
  • Permit use of copyright material for parody - You Tube videos.
  • Extend exceptions for library archiving to cover audio-visual works.
  • Permit data analytics and mining for non-commercial research.
  • Setting up a Digital Copyright Exchange to help manage copyright more effectively and faster in the UK helping 'smaller' users as well as large organisations.
  • Requiring collecting societies (including those that provide blanket licences for schools) to work to a common framework
  • Ensuring that licences and contracts for use do not "over-ride" the exceptions permitted under the UK Act.
  • Permitting the use of 'orphan works' (in-copyright material for which the owner cannot be identified or found.)
  • Developing a catch-all 'exception' at EU level to take account of new, as yet unknown 'technologies' and 'applications'

The Review also deals with other areas of Intellectual Property such as Patents and Design Rights. Further recommendations support business and enterprise, involvement with EU and World initiaitives and a proposed extension of the work of the UK IP Office which includes some additional support for education.

Links

 Final Consultation on proposals to change the UK's copyright system 2011, UK IP Office. Intro and links a to all the documents    UK IP Office December 2011.

 The Hargreaves Review: 'Digital Opportunity', UK IP Office, June 2011.

 NEN response to 'The Review of Intellectual Property and Growth', consultation, March 2011.

 Longer article about The Hargreaves Review and what it might mean for Schools, July 2011

Article added 15th March 2011; updated July 2011, October 2011 and January 2012.

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