For Immediate Release

January 17, 2007

Contact: Deidre Huntington
Ph: (202) 220-4550
Email: dhuntington@publishers.org

U.S., U.K. Publishers Applaud Chinese Crackdown on Textbook Piracy

January 17, 2007:  Groups representing publishers in the United Kingdom and the United States have expressed their approval of recent actions taken by a number of government officials in the People’s Republic of China sending a message that the Chinese government intends to seek out and punish those responsible for the unauthorized copying of textbooks on university campuses. In a statement issued today, the Publishers Association (U.K.) and the Association of American Publishers (U.S.) said they are encouraged by a number of recent actions taken to address this longstanding problem.

The two groups cited the recent Punishment Decision (PD) issued by Copyright Bureau officials in Hubei Province, in cooperation with the National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC), against Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University in Wuhan after the medical college textbook center was caught with thousands of infringing copies of books in a raid on September 22.  Under the terms of the PD, Tongji Medical College will pay a fine of 100,000 RMB (about US$12,000), the maximum fine permissible, and has been ordered stop all infringing activity. All of the pirated books will be confiscated.

The Huazhong punishment follows other PDs issued against universities throughout China as part of a recent nationwide crackdown on illegal copying of textbooks on university campuses.  Following investigations, Chinese copyright authorities have taken action against a number of universities, including Tsinghua University in Beijing, Fudan University in Shanghai, South China Normal University in Guangzhou, and Wuhan University, among others.  A total of seven Punishment Decisions were issued in the last months of 2006, sending a message that illegal photocopying will not be tolerated on China’s university campuses.

The U.S. and U.K. publishers noted that the action has been complemented by unprecedented cooperation between national copyright and publication authorities and education officials in an effort to spread the word about China’s stance on university-based piracy. The National Copyright Administration of China and the General Administration of Press and Publication of China have joined forces with the Ministry of Education in issuing a series of notices in recent months warning regional and local bureaus and universities at all levels that illegal copying is against the law and will not be tolerated. The notices, dated August 29, September 27 and November 10, 2006, order universities to cease unauthorized activities and to implement measures to ensure use of legitimate materials by China’s students and professors. All universities were urged to monitor implementation of the directives, stipulating that the textbook centers be free of infringing materials by the end of December and that failure to comply would be punishable.

PA and AAP representatives expressed strong approval of these measures. Simon Bell, International Director at the UK’s Publishers Association, said:  “We are pleased by the unprecedented cooperation among authorities that has taken place in recent months.” Patricia Judd, who directs International Copyright Enforcement at the Association of American Publishers, added that “Illegal large-scale photocopying, of both foreign and Chinese books, is a detriment to China’s educational system, and we support the Chinese government fully in its bid to supply its students with the highest quality, legitimate materials available in the market.” 

The two groups noted that Chinese students benefit greatly from access to the best information available, and that American and British publishers are highly sensitive to the needs of Chinese students. Trade in books produced by American, British and Chinese authors continues to expand.  This year, well over a hundred representatives of American and British publishers attended Beijing Book Fair; increasing numbers of Chinese publishers attend the London Book Fair and the Book Expo America, illustrating the enormous interest and opportunity for growth in scholarship across borders.  However, Chinese, British and American publishers have been losing hundreds of millions of dollars to commercial-scale photocopying of textbooks every year, and the Publishers Association and the Association of American Publishers are committed to work with Chinese authorities and colleagues in the Chinese publishing industry to end this problem and allow legitimate publishing activities to experience robust growth in this age of global markets.

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The Association of American Publishers is the national trade association of the U.S. book publishing industry. AAP’s more than 300 members include most of the major commercial publishers in the United States, as well as smaller and non-profit publishers, university presses and scholarly societies. AAP members publish hardcover and paperback books in every field, educational materials for all levels, scholarly journals, computer software, and electronic products and services. The protection of intellectual property rights in all media and the promotion of reading and literacy are among the Association’s highest priorities.

The Publishers Association is the leading trade organization serving book, journal and electronic publishers in the UK. It brings publishers together to discuss the main issues facing the industry and to define the practical policies that will take the industry forward. The aim of The Publishers Association is to serve and promote by all lawful means the interest of book journal and electronic publishers and to protect those interests.

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