In the current digital era, preserving and accessing documents has become easier than ever. However, the rapid development of technology also poses many challenges to copyright. Copyright not only protects the rights of authors but also ensures that documents are digitized and shared legally. Please follow the article of VCD below.
1. What is a digital library?
According to the provisions of Clause 2, Article 3 of the 2019 Library Law as follows: A digital library is a library or part of a library with information resources processed and stored in digital form that library users access and exploit through electronic devices and cyberspace.
Therefore, a digital library or electronic library is a type of library that has computerized all or some library services, where users can come to look up and use services that are usually done in a traditional library but have been computerized.
Currently, the development of digital libraries is being promoted in Vietnam to modernize libraries, meet the needs of library users and build digital databases.
2. Authors’ rights in digitizing documents
The 2019 Library Law has provided important regulations on the development of digital libraries, especially in protecting copyright and managing digital information resources. Article 31 of this Law clearly states the basic principles in building and managing digital information resources, including:
- Building digital information resources: Libraries need to systematically collect and digitize documents, ensuring that these resources are preserved and accessed effectively.
- Resource handling and preservation: The storage and preservation of digital information resources must comply with technical and professional library standards, to ensure the safety and integrity of documents.
- Use advanced software: To manage digital libraries, modern technologies need to be applied, from designing smart user interfaces to ensuring openness and connectivity between data systems. This not only makes searching and exploiting documents easier but also supports granting access to users.
- Providing access: The law also stipulates that libraries must ensure access to digital information resources, enabling users to make the most of these resources.
Digital library operations can infringe copyright by digitizing documents and allowing users to download or upload digitized documents without the author’s permission. The 2009 Intellectual Property Law has been amended and supplemented by the 2022 Intellectual Property Law, which has new regulations on digital library activities related to intellectual property rights. Specifically, according to the provisions of Article 25 as follows:
Exceptions that do not infringe copyright
1. Cases of using published works without permission or paying royalties but must provide information about the author’s name and origin of the work include:
…
e) Using works in library activities for non-commercial purposes, including copying works stored in libraries for preservation, provided that this copy must be marked as an archived copy and limited to the target audience according to the provisions of law on libraries and archives; reasonably copying a part of a work using a copying device for others to serve research and study; Copy or transmit a work stored for inter-library use through a computer network, provided that the number of readers at the same time does not exceed the number of copies of the work held by the above libraries, except in cases where the copyright owner permits and does not apply in cases where the work has been provided on the market in digital form;
Based on this regulation, libraries can now use published works without permission or paying royalties, but must record information about the author’s name and the origin and source of the work in the following cases:
- Copy for storage (with a backup copy marked and limited access).
- Copy or transmit the author via computer (provided that the number of readers at the same time does not exceed the number of copies of the work). This regulation does not apply in cases where the work has been provided on the market in digital form.
- Copying a part of the work using a copying device for research and study purposes.
Therefore, libraries may be related to digitized documents according to the additional regulations, accordingly, to ensure compliance with intellectual property rights and avoid copyright infringement, libraries need to strictly control and monitor the activities of users in digital libraries. At the same time, there needs to be cooperation and responsibility from both authors and users to maintain a balance between the interests of the parties involved.
Above is the article “ Copyright in digitizing documents ” that VCD sends to you. We hope this article is useful to you.
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