COPY THIS...

As a community of writers, many of us, however wishful, do not depend soley on our creative abilities as a way to make a living. But, recently, it has been brought to my attention that there is a bit of legislation in the works which merits some consideration from us all.

The Orphan Works Act was originally introduced to Congress in 2006. An "orphan work" is a work that is protected by copyright but whose owner cannot be located. The Orphan Works Act is an attempt to regulate the outcome of potential situations which arise from the use of such works by others.

The 2006 version of the Orphan Works Act was not passed, largely due to the organized outcry of the creative community.

This year, there are two revised versions of the bill.

It seems to me, anyone who hopes to benefit from copyright laws, should be concerned with any attempts to change their future.

If you would like to further educate yourself, there are plenty of sites devoted to this issue.

John Keeley, an attorney who served as counsel to the Intellectual Property Subcommittee of the US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, has a site set up to follow the progress of this legislation. http://www.orphanworks.net/

If you go to http://orphanworks.blogspot.com/, you will find an active blog set up by the Stock Artists Alliance with links to several other groups who are devoted to keeping discussion alive.

If you are interested in reading the actual bills, you can download them from http://www.georgesheldon.com/docs/The_Orphan_Works_Act_of_2008.pdf
and
http://www.georgesheldon.com/docs/The_Shawn_Bentley_Orphan_Works_Act_of_2008.pdf


Think about it. Talk about it. Pass it on... Rita, Secretary CPWO