UNB to remain outside the Access Copyright license agreement
Author: Communications
Posted on Jun 29, 2012
Category: UNB Saint John
Following a thorough review, the University of New Brunswick has decided not to sign a license agreement with Access Copyright, recently negotiated with the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC). This decision reflects UNB’s concerns about academic freedom and the cost of higher education, supported by taxpayers and students.
Along with several other universities across Canada, UNB has been operating outside of the Access Copyright tariff since September 1, 2011. The measures taken by the university since that 2011 decision have strongly positioned UNB to enable students and faculty to access teaching and research materials, while ensuring that authors and copyright holders are compensated appropriately for use of their work. To this end, UNB Libraries has established a system of copyright clearance support and maintains negotiated licenses covering approximately 37,000 electronic journals and 500,000 eBooks that provide extensive rights for our use in teaching and research.
"The UNB Student Union is pleased that the University of New Brunswick has stopped the addition of a new ancillary fee to students by not signing the license agreement with Access Copyright, despite minimal discussions with students," said UNB Fredericton Student Union President Andrew Martel.
“The Students' Representative Council (SRC) at UNB Saint John is pleased that administration has decided against signing the Access Copyright agreement,” said UNB Saint John SRC President Brad Trecartin. “UNB, along with many other institutions across the country, has declared it to not be in the best interests of students nor worth the additional fees to that the students would be burdened with."
“AUNBT (The Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers) welcomes this decision as signing the licensing agreement would have given up on hard-won fair use rights and imposed costs that would ultimately have to be borne by students,” said Jula Hughes, AUNBT President. “Our library colleagues are to be commended for the hard work that has made this decision possible.”
UNB’s faculty, staff, and students, with assistance from our librarians and copyright office, have worked very hard since 2011 when UNB decided to operate in a copyright compliant fashion without resorting to the interim tariff from Access Copyright. This action supports our strategic plan in respect of intellectual property rights and a sustainable future.
For more information visit http://www.lib.unb.ca/copyright/ .