After a long and expensive fight, the Internet Archive has been granted an exemption from the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
The Archive stores computer games and other old software for posterity, and runs the famous Internet Wayback machine. However, it feared that because it was copying others' work it could be in breach of the DMCA.
According to [a press release at] the outfit's website, thanks to the hard work of two law school students of Peter Jaszi of American University, Jieun Kim and Doug Agopsowicz, the Internet Archive and other libraries may continue to preserve software and video game titles without fear of going to jail.
The move cost it $50,000 of pro-bono lawyer time, and a spokesArchivist said that it would be jolly nice if the government could sit down and write a better law that could protect libraries and others archivists of the World Wide Wibble.
Posted by
Peter Suber at 11/30/2006 02:00:00 PM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
