Re: Question on Copyright

There are two questions here that seem to be intermixed.

1) is the material fair use?
2) if I make it accessible, is it still fair use if it was fair use to
start with?

Most of the answers here have to do with determining whether it was fair
use to start with.

If we start out with the assumption that it was fair use, but in
accessible, then the answer to your question is, making it accessible does
not cause it to lose its fair use status.

Gregg


On Thu, Sep 9, 2021 at 10:36 AM Bruce Bailey <Bailey@access-board.gov>
wrote:

> Wayne, I am not quite tracking how fair use and copyright comes into
> play.  I think is because the professor was only sharing parts and not the
> whole book?  Regardless, your professor has a legal, ethical, moral, and
> pedagogical obligation to use accessible formats.  Please see if the school
> has something like disability student services (terms vary).  These fights
> are no fun, and you have been doing them all your life, but I am guessing
> that you are not on your home campus!
>
> Jonathan, thanks for sharing that document.  I was hoping it was simpler
> to demonstrate that appeals to fair use and copyright is a dodge.  The most
> concrete bit, I think, is the following sentence (bottom of print page 12)
> and reference to endnote 10:
>
> As a result, wide-ranging consent decrees have compelled universities to
> create comprehensive policies and procedures, and to devote substantial
> resources to ensuring that disabled members of the campus community have
> equitable access to technology and other university services, including
> course materials. 10
>
> 10.  See Consent Decree, U.S. v. Miami University, supra n. 4.
>
> I am pretty sure that can be found here:
> https://www.ada.gov/miami_university_cd.html
> In particular, "D. Textbook and Course Material Accessibility" is on
> point.  The employer of your instruction should have some concerns.  But
> maybe your teacher is happy to do the little work required, and honestly is
> concerned for copyright?  The schools disability students services folks
> should (1) be able to provide legal clarity that fair use and copyright is
> not a blocker, and (2) getting started with accessible formats.
>
> As George mentions, Bookshare is a solution going forward.  I am clear if
> individual unaffiliated professors can sign up.  As I understand the
> organization, it is oriented towards students and schools.
>
> It is indeed the case that DOJ will be involved if matters get to court,
> as they did with Miami University.  However, it is almost always the
> Department of Education Office for Civil Right (ED OCR) leading up to
> that.  Wayne, if you are not satisfied with the school's response, please
> consider filing a discrimination complaint with ED OCR.  See:
> https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/howto.html
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jonathan Avila <jon.avila@levelaccess.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, September 8, 2021 11:30 AM
> To: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
> Subject: RE: Question on Copyright
>
> Below is a good article on copyright and accessible text in the US -- in
> the US there is a clear right of access to these texts
>
> https://www.arl.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/2019.07.15-white-paper-law-and-accessible-texts.pdf
>
> Jonathan
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Charles 'chaals' (McCathie) Nevile <chaals@yandex.ru>
> Sent: Friday, September 3, 2021 10:14 PM
> To: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
> Subject: Re: Question on Copyright
>
> Copyright is national law - so what is true in the US is not necessarily
> true in any other country.
>
> I don't know of a generally applicable good way to get something in an
> accessible format, whatever the copyright situation. :(
>
> In many places there is an explicit legal right to copy something into an
> accessible format for the specific purpose of meeting accessibility
> requirements, but that takes work. In many countries, if the provider
> doesn't do it for you, you can in legal theory claim damages due to illegal
> discrimination because the provider already has a legal obligation to do
> that for you, but that takes work as well. And companies like Domino's
> pizza have deliberately argued cases through multiple appeals, over years,
> rather than just doing what they should have. Sometimes both of these
> things are true, but that still doesn't solve the problem in your original
> question.
>
> As a non-lawyer I suspect that in most practical cases, if you have some
> material under a fair-use exemption, finding an accessible version and
> using that would be reasonable. But even I know of specific situations
> where you could still be prosecuted for doing that. If you want to be
> really sure, you need a legal expert not an accessibility one :(
>
> cheers
>
>
> On Sat, 04 Sep 2021 11:31:04 +1000, Wayne Dick <wayneedick@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > ...Is there a good way for teachers to obtain an accessible
> > format
> > and still qualify for fair-use?
>
>
>
>
>