what are Limitations and exceptions and why are they important?
Limitations and Exceptions (L&Es) are the cornerstone of access to copyright-protected content for libraries and their users. Without exceptions, also known as user rights, librarians and the people who use libraries could only view or read library materials. All other uses, such as quoting from a work or making a research copy would require express permission, an impossible task for libraries with their large and hugely diverse collections.
Exceptions and limitations
- help safeguard fundamental rights, including freedom of expression and the free flow of information in society.
- promote the dissemination of knowledge and information for education, research and socio-economic development.
- support innovation and competition by allowing, for example, reverse engineering of computer programs for interoperability with new products.
Collectively, L&Es underpin the purpose of copyright itself – to encourage creativity and learning. On the one hand, copyright grants exclusive legal protection to creators who may be rewarded for their work, while exceptions and limitations enable reasonable access for society to encourage innovation and further creativity.
The mechanism that enables the copyright system to work effectively is the balance between appropriate legal protections for copyright owners combined with well crafted exceptions.
Limitations and exceptions in international copyright law
Limitations and exceptions have existed in international law since the first copyright treaty - the Berne Convention (1886) has exceptions for quotation, teaching, news reporting and political speeches. The 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) re-states the need to “maintain a balance between the rights of authors and the larger public interest, particularly education, research and access to information”. It also permits countries to extend existing L&Es for the digital environment, and to devise new exceptions appropriate to the digital network age.
However, despite such laudable statements, the fact is that in many countries exceptions have not kept pace with digital technologies and how information is used and shared today. This is in part due to a structural imbalance in the copyright system: rights of copyright owners are international and guaranteed, while the exceptions are mostly discretionary and left to the national level to decide.
The WIPO Marrakesh Treaty (2013), the first treaty to deal specifically with copyright exceptions, set out to correct this imbalance with regard to persons with print disabilities. Countries that join Marrakesh must adopt exceptions allowing the making of accessible format copies, and the sharing of those copies across borders.
In other areas, such as libraries, evidence shows that exceptions in developing countries are often more restrictive than those of industrialized countries. For example, the right to make digital copies is uncertain or expressly barred in some cases (even for preservation), and inter-library document supply services may be prohibited.
What does EIFL advocate for?
EIFL advocates for copyright exceptions that
- enable core library activities and services, such as preservation, support for education and research, and services to persons with disabilities
- unlock use of orphan and out-of-commerce works many of which are of high social and educational value to historians, scholars and creators, but no longer of commercial value
- are fit for the global, digital environment: format neutral, apply across borders, and are protected from override by licence terms and technological protection measures
- will stand the test of time: a general fair dealing or fair use type exception helps keep the law up-to-date with new technological developments, while specific library exceptions set out certain, permitted activities (helpful for the library community
Read about EIFL’s work advocating at WIPO for global copyright rules to benefit libraries, and for national copyright law reform in EIFL partner countries.
Further reading
Why we have copyright limitations and exceptions: EIFL Explainer