Re: Braille copyright violations

Public Law 104-197 contains a provision which should help you. Section 316 of the Act adds section 121 to the copyright code allowing institutions whose primary mission is to provide specialized services to the disabled to produce---without copyright owners' permission---entire copies of copyrighted works in special formats like Braille for disabled persons. The copies must have a notice that further copying may be a violation and must have a notice of copyright. A few other restrictions are part of the new provision.

Anne Klinefelter
Head of Public Services
The University of Miami Law Library
aklinefe[_at_]law.miami.edu

On Wed, 30 Oct 1996, Shonda Konemann <okosb[_at_]gteens.com> wrote:
>
> Could someone please help me with this problem? I am the librarian at
> the Oklahoma School for the Blind. We use materials in braille and
> large print with our students. However, when items available in large
> print are not available in braille I often find that we have "major
> discussions" among the faculty about whether it is legal to produce
> that item in braille for two to three students to use during the school
> year. We have software programs which allow us to read, scan, and
> produce materials in braille....which is fine for our own personal
> productions. I have informed our staff about copyright laws and I am
> holding out that anything produced in braille must be granted copyright
> permission from the print publisher before it is produced. I can
> understand certain items, such as magazine articles scanned and
> reproduced for research by a student. But isn't it a violation to
> produce full-text books into braille from the print for two to three
> students to use during the year....and use them year after year?
>
> I feel like the copyright police because the objections I hear from
> teachers is that "it's not fair that these kids can't have the same text
> in braille that is available and we can produce it for them...no one
> needs to know." I know! If anyone knows any laws which will help to
> clarify this issue for us, I'll be truly grateful....and probably hated,
> but it's the law, right?
Received on Thu Oct 31 1996 - 16:20:23 GMT