3 messages:

1)____

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 1997 16:14:00 -0600
From: Dena Lahue <dlahue@FAULKNER.EDU>
Subject: Donated Journals -- Copyright Law (2 messages)

I'm not sure what the specific laws are regarding copyright and donated
journals. I do know that there is a big difference between an individual
paying for a subscription which is donated to the library as a GIFT and the
same person being REIMBURSED for that subscription. The former is fine and
happens every day. But reimbursing the person for the cost of the
subscription is unethical.  In short, you are bypassing the publisher by not
paying the institutional rate.  Also, accrediting organizations look for
current/actual subscriptions, not donations/freebies.

Just my two cents..

Dena Lahue
Faulkner University
Montgomery, AL

2)____

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 1997 17:47:31 -0500
From: Lisa Macklin <lisa.macklin@IBID.LIBRARY.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Personal/Institutional Prices (Ellen Duranceau)

It is my understanding that it is sometimes against the journal publisher's
policy that issues subscribed to by an individual be added to a library's
collection, but not a violation of copyright law.  When I worked at another
institution, we received a gift of journal issues that a professor's wife
had subscribed to as a member of a society.  Since she was a personal
member of the society, the journal issues had across the top of the cover a
statement "Personal member copy, not for library use for 5 years from the
date on this issue."  Essentially, the society did not want personal
members (who subscribed at a significantly lower price) to give their
issues to libraries (who would have to subscribe at the substantially
higher institutional price).  The issues were not yet 5 years old, so I
called the society and asked if they would make an exception and allow us
to add these issues to our collection.  The exception was that we would not
have subscribed to this journal anyway, and this was not an ongoing gift.
The society's board felt they could not make an exception for us, so we did
not add the journal issues to our collection (we actually returned them to
the donor with an explanation).

Did this have anything to do with copyright law?  No, it was the policy of
the society who published the journal.  Could this society publisher have
sued the library or the individual member for placing these issues in our
collection?  I don't know.  To me, it is an unenforceable policy on the
part of the publisher.  I also thought the society member who donated the
journals could possibly suffer the greatest consequences (I suppose they
could be kicked out of the society, denied attendance at their meetings, or
some other extreme repercussion by the society).  Hope my recounting of
this experience helps clarify the situation.

Lisa A. Macklin
Head, Serials Control Dept.
Georgia Institute of Technology
Library - Serials Control
Atlanta, GA  30332-0900

3)____

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 1997 15:14:00 -0800
From: Mike Scully <mscully@SWEDISH.ORG>
Subject: Donations/Gifts & Copyright

There is demonstrated interest in the topic, so I am posting to the list,
hopefully without betraying any confidences:

The original discussion here was on the difference in price between
institutional/library- vs. personal- subscriptions to journals (and perhaps
getting the latter donated to the library, at a lesser expense).  I stated
that gifts were a particular problem, and could not be used for Interlibrary
Loan, nor photocopying in general.

Now, before my incoming mailbox fills with more "say WHAT?" messages, here's
the source of my statement, from our files.  It was inspired by a series of
messages about handling of gifts (>that's< a whole other story), on the
MEDLIB-L (Medical Libraries/ Librarians) discussion list.

A colleague reported (privately) that they do not accept any donated
journals ever since she found out that it is a major copyright violation.
If you accept donated journals, she said, you can not do anything with them,
copy from them, interlibrary loan, nothing, because you didn't buy them.
They don't accept any donated books, she said, unless they are classics in
their specialty areas.

I phoned her.  The source of HER information was a copyright seminar.  The
seminar presenter was a copyright attorney and a librarian.

If it will help, I will attempt to contact the colleague, and she may be
able to identify the seminar presenter.

Reference Library       | 206/386-2484 (phone)    | Mike Scully
Swedish Medical Center  | 206/386-3570 (fax)      | mscully@swedish.org
747 Broadway            | "All opinions expressed | Library Technician/
Seattle WA  98122-4307  | are my own."            | WMLA QuickDOC rep.