Intellectual Property in Academia Online Workshop Series '09-10

Intellectual Property in Academia Online Workshop Series '09-10

Institutional Copyright Policies

Dates: January 14-29, 2010 (Register by January 4)
Moderator: Steven McDonald, J.D., General Counsel, Rhode Island School of Design
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Join attorney Steve McDonald as he helps you explore the often-complex intersection between the worlds of copyright policy and academia. McDonald will discuss and help you evaluate whether an institution needs to develop a copyright policy, as well as how to answer some of the many questions that flow from the process of doing so within the arena of higher education. Who owns the work? And who can do what with the work? Is cyberspace a separate jurisdiction with a different set of rules than the physical world? Does the institution need a new policy and resource, or is a current policy sufficient and applicable—or adaptable—to the technologies, opportunities, and demands of academic life, both online and offline, in the digital era?

A fellow and past member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of College and University Attorneys, McDonald speaks from his nearly 20 years of experience in cyberspace legal issues and has a unique vantage point on copyright issues in the context of artwork due to his role as general counsel at the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design.

Goals for the course:

In this course, participants will:

1. Gain a practical understanding of basic copyright principles as they apply in and to higher education generally;
2. Learn how to evaluate institutional copyright policies and discuss the development and modification of those policies;
3. Understand the policies and technical steps your institution will need to implement in order to take full advantage of the opportunities that copyright law allows;
4. Gain a greater understanding of Internet law and policy;
5. Be encouraged to think about how copyright policies can serve the educational mission.

Google Book Search in Depth

Dates: February 1-12, 2010 (Register by January 25)
Instructor: Peter Jaszi, J.D., Faculty Director of the Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Law Clinic and Professor of Law at the Washington College of Law at American University
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This workshop will focus on copyright issues in the dispute between the Google Book Search project and authors/publishers. Sessions will review this ambitious plan to create a universal digital library, the lawsuits filed to block it, and the recently proposed settlement agreement in the litigation. Focus topics will include:

• "Mass Digitization and Fair Use;"
• "Basic Elements of the Google Book Search Settlement;"
• "Stakeholders' criticisms of the Google Book Search Settlement;" and
• "Possible Next Steps."

Goals for the course:

Participation in this course will provide opportunity for:

1. Understanding the intersection of fair use and mass digitization;
2. Analysis of the Google Book Search enterprise;
3. Detailed analysis of the Google Book Search settlement;
4. Discussion of the possible impact on users and libraries.

P2P File-sharing on Campus: Legal Controversies and Emerging Solutions

Dates: March 1-12, 2010 (Register by February 22)
Instructor: Fred von Lohmann, J.D. Senior Staff Attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation
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Major entertainment industry players continue to decry what they perceive as an epidemic of "piracy" on campus networks, while sending a flurry of "DMCA notices" to university administrators demanding that they take steps to address the problem. While the recording industry's lawsuits against individual students have tapered off, the pressure continues to mount on university administrators. This workshop will bring you up-to-date on the legal issues surrounding peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing on campus networks and will also provide an up-to- the-minute overview of emerging solutions (such as the music industry's Choruss licensing offers). This workshop will also cover the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA).

Goals for the course:

Participation in this course will provide opportunity for:

1. Discussion of peer-to-peer file sharing issues at universities;
2. Discussion of the historical RIAA approach to file sharing on campus;
3. Analysis of peer-to-peer file sharing at universities in light of the DMCA;
4. Review and critique of emerging licensing solutions.

Participants will receive daily response and feedback from workshop instructors.
In addition, each workshop will include live chats with the
workshop instructors and invited guests.