Book People Archive

Major fee increases proposed for copyright searches

If you use the Copyright Office's search service to check for renewals
and registrations of copyright, or are interested in the potential of
orphan works, you should know that the Copyright Office is planning
various increases of its fees effective July 1, including major increases
in search-related fees.

   Up until 1999, the fee they charged for searching copyright records was
$20 per hour.  In 1999, citing the need to cover costs, the Copyright Office
raised the fee to $65 per hour.  Some time later (I'm not quite sure when),
this was increased slightly to $75 per hour.

   The new schedule proposes doubling this, to $150 per hour.  For folks
concerned about whether they'll be able to afford a search with these higher
fees, they're also proposing adding yet another fee: $100 just to give
an estimate of how much a search will cost you!  (They haven't charged for
this to date.)

   See http://www.copyright.gov/reports/fees2006.html for more details
on the new fees they plan to charge.

So:

    -- If you are thinking of requesting any copyright search services from
the Office, get your requests in their hands before the end of this month
to avoid the higher fees.

    -- If you are concerned about the impact of the new fees, you may want
to contact the Copyright Office, and your legislators, protesting the search
fee increases.  (The fees will go into effect unless the Office reconsiders,
or Congress intervenes.)

Note that the new fees could have a major impact on the uptake
of "orphan works" (since the "reasonable search" requirements are likely to
require a search of copyright records) and on the ability of people to post
online copies of other works whose copyright status might not be obvious.

The rationale given for increasing search fees by the extent proposed
includes an assertion that the service benefits "only or primarily the user
of that service" and therefore should be priced accordingly, in part
"not to undercut or greatly exceed the price of those in the private
sector who provide the same service."  (See pp. 7-8 of the fee study linked
to from the URL above.)  This assumption of limited benefit clearly does
not apply when orphan works are revived, or other "lost" works are reposted
online for the rowld to enjoy.  And the Copyright Office should
not increase its fees merely to protect the business models of the private
sector.

There isn't much time left to act.  Feel free to pass the word along
to other forums and concerned folks.

John Mark Ockerbloom
Editor, The Online Books Page
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/