June 27, 2005
In a unanimous ruling in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios v. Grokster, the U.S. Supreme Court today declared that distributors of peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing systems may be held liable if they actively induce copyright infringement by users of those P2P systems. Importantly, the Court strongly reaffirmed its earlier ruling in Sony Corp of America v. Universal City Studios which held that technologies could not be outlawed if they were capable of substantial noninfringing uses. The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA)—a group composed of the American Association of Law Libraries, American Library Association, Association of Research Libraries, Medical Library Association, and Special Libraries Association—welcomes this balanced decision that supports the interests of libraries while addressing issues of widespread copyright infringement. By focusing on conduct that induces infringement, rather than on the distribution of technology, the decision ensures the continued availability of new and evolving digital technologies to libraries and their patrons.
Members of the LCA joined the Internet Archive, the American Civil Liberties Union, and Project Gutenberg in an amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court in this case (http://www.arl.org/info/frn/copy/ctcases.html#metro). The brief includes examples of peer-to-peer applications in the education and library arenas as well as a focus on free speech issues. The brief urged the Court not to disturb the rule it articulated in the Sony decision.
The Supreme Court acknowledged the positive uses of P2P technology, stating that "[g]iven these benefits in security, cost, and efficiency, peer-to-peer networks are employed to store and distribute electronic files by universities, government agencies, corporation, and libraries…."
Prue Adler, the Associate Executive Director of the Association of Research Libraries, a member of the LCA, stated, "The library community is gratified that the Court upheld the Sony rule and struck a balance between the protection of copyrighted works and the development of innovative technologies."
For more information contact:
Jonathan Band
jband@policybandwidth.com
(202) 296-5675
The American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) is a nonprofit educational organization with over 5,000 members nationwide. AALL’s mission is to promote and enhance the value of law libraries to the legal and public communities, to foster the profession of law librarianship, and to provide leadership in the field of legal information and information policy.
http://www.aall.org/
Contact: Mary Alice Baish (202-662-9200)
The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit educational organization of over 65,000 librarians, library trustees, and other friends of libraries dedicated to improving library services and promoting the public interest in a free and open information society.
http://www.ala.org/
Contact: Miriam Nisbet (202-628-8410)
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 123 research libraries in North America. Its mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations.
http://www.arl.org/
Contact: Prue Adler (202-296-2296)
The Medical Library Association (MLA), a nonprofit, educational organization, is a leading advocate for health sciences information professionals with more than 4,700 members worldwide. Through its programs and services, MLA provides lifelong educational opportunities, supports a knowledgebase of health information research, and works with a global network of partners to promote the importance of quality information for improved health to the health care community and the public.
http://www.mlanet.org/
Contact: Carla Funk (312-419-9094 x.14)
The Special Libraries Association (SLA) is a nonprofit global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners. SLA serves more than 12,000 members in 83 countries in the information profession, including corporate, academic and government information specialists. SLA promotes and strengthens its members through learning, advocacy and networking initiatives.
http://www.sla.org/
Contact: Doug Newcomb (703-647-4923)
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