Libraries and Publishers postion themselves on issue of International Interlibrary Lending - Who Shares and How?

Research Libraries, Publishers Stake Out Positions on International ILL

"The International Association of Scientific, Technical & Medical Publishers (STM), representing some of the major STM publishers like Elsevier, Wiley, Springer, among others, released a statement on June 8, which says that library exceptions for document delivery in the digital environment, particularly of individual journal articles, are justified only in very limited circumstances and with the permission of the publisher. Among other points, STM asserts that:

• In order to "maximize legal clarity," cross-border deliveries "should be governed by voluntary licenses negotiated directly with publishers";
• Direct digital delivery to an end-user "is best governed and coordinated by rights-holders";
• Libraries should only be able to deliver on-site, print copies to walk-in library patrons;
• Libraries should exercise "due diligence" to ensure that any deliveries to individuals are for "private, non-commercial use."

"We do believe that digital document delivery must take place in a licensed environment, especially for international deliveries and especially for commercial deliveries," said Michael Mabe, the chief executive office of STM."    (more).

ARL Research Task force report on international Interlibrary Lending (ILL)

"ARL reaffirms precedence of copyright law
An ARL task force has published a three-part report this month that reaffirms the right of domestic research libraries to engage in international interlibrary loan and document delivery and to send copies of some copyrighted works to foreign libraries, "provided the libraries meet the requirements of the law."

ARL cautions its membership not to allow license agreements to supplant the rights granted by Section 108, which is "a leading legal support for the reproduction and distribution of copyrighted works in ILL."  (more)

Research Library Issues, no. 275 (June 2011)

Adjusting to new market realities
Kevin Smith, the scholarly communications officer at Duke University and another member of the ARL task force, wrote on his blog that STM has "been carrying on a quiet campaign of intimidation regarding ILL." (more)