Guaranteeing access to knowledge: The role of libraries

• Author: Ben White
• Position: Head of Intellectual Property, British Library
• Pages: 15-18

p. 15WIPO | MAGAZINE

As gateways to know ledge and culture, li braries play a

fundamental role in society. The resources and services

they offer create opportunities for learning, support

literacy an d educatio n, and help sh ape the new id eas

and persp ectives tha t are centr al to a creati ve and in-

novative socie ty. They also hel p ensure an a uthentic

record of knowledge created and accumulated by past

generations. In a world without libraries, it would be

difcul t to advance research an d human knowledge or

preserve t he world’s cumu lative knowl edge and her it-

age for future generations. Libraries are keenly aware

of the need to m aintain the bala nce between protec ting

the rights o f authors and safeg uarding the wid er public

interest. Copyright exceptions, which are currently under

discussio n in WIPO’s Standing Com mittee on Copyrig ht

and Related R ights (SCCR), form an integra l part of na-

tional copy right systems. They pla y an essential role in

enabling t he delivery of lib rary servi ces to the public and

in achieving t he copyright syst em’s goals of encouragi ng

creativi ty and learning. This a rticle explores th e endur-

ing impor tance of libraries a nd some of the intelle ctual

property-related challenges they face.

Libraries represe nt different things to different peopl e – from a

place where mothers can ta ke toddlers to read their rst stories

and students can study, to a service al lowing anyone to borrow

a book, access the Internet or do re search. Quite simply, librar-

ies offer a means by whic h we can gain access to knowledge.

SUPPORTING EDUCATION

Libraries are synonym ous with education and of fer countless

learning opportunities that can fuel economic, social and cul-

tural development. The inspiring story of William Kamkwamba

from Malawi underlin es the difference a lib rary can make.

Having borrowed a book about w indmills from his local library,

Mr. Kamkwamba learned how to build an e nergy-producing

turbine for his village. On the s trength of this experience he

went on to study at a leading US univers ity. That one book not

only changed his life; it also tra nsformed the lives of those in

his village communit y. Such stories explain why many countries

are eager to ensure that librari es continue to provide access

to knowledge, learning and ideas.

In addition to lending books, libra ries are also involved in copy-

ing materials for research or p rivate study purposes. Students

cannot afford to buy every b ook, or pay for every television

broadcast or journal they nee d to access for their studies. They

therefore rely on the serv ices of a library.

The exceptions and limitations that are a n integral part of many

national copyright systems play a c ritically impor tant role in

enabling librarie s to deliver such servi ces. For example, they

allow libraries to make copie s, on behalf of students and oth-

ers for research or study pu rposes, of works that might not

otherwise be directl y accessible to them. Librar ies also make

interlibrary loans p ossible, providing local access to materials

that normally reside in a li brary hundreds, or even thou sands,

of miles away. Just ve years ago, applying the conce pt of inter-

library loans to digita l works was problematic. However, with the

widespread availability of electronic platforms that effortlessly

control access to content, such as iTunes and Kindl e, and the

GUA R ANTEEING

ACCESS TO

K NOW LEDGE:

he role of libraries By Ben White, Head of Inte llectual

Property, British Library *

* Mr. White c hairs the Conferenc e of European

National Librarian’s Copyright Working Group.

He also sits on the U K Intellectual Prope rty

Ofce’s Copyright Research Advisory Group.

The views expre ssed in this artic le are Mr. White’s

and may not reec t those of the British Lib rary.

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