Re: public lending right
Pigeon writes:
> Huh? Do you have to pay to get a book out of a library in the US then?
In the US lending and renting is entirely outside the scope of copyright
law. This appears to not be true in the UK, but public libraries are
exempt.
> In the UK you pay nothing, unless you keep it beyond a time limit; then
> you pay a fine, which is a punishment, not a fee for the book.
This is the case in public libraries in the US as well. It is also legal
here to rent out copyrighted material without permission of the copyright
owner.
> In other words, UK libraries don't lend non-free books.
Are you claiming that UK libraries do not lend books published under the
usual "All Rights Reserved" terms? I doubt that.
> They do lend non-free cassettes and CDs of copyrighted music at a quid a
> shot or thereabouts.
Look at your copyright law and you will see why. I'll bet you pay a lot
more to rent video tapes than we do.
--
John Hasler
john@dhh.gt.org (John Hasler)
Dancing Horse Hill
Elmwood, WI
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