Public Meeting

The agenda and procedure stated below follow the March 26, 2009 Federal Register Notice in which the United States Copyright Office (Copyright Office) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced a public meeting on the topic of copyright exceptions for the blind or other persons with disabilities.¹ The meeting will be held in connection with a forthcoming meeting of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). 

Date and Location of Public Meeting:

The meeting will be held on Monday, May 18, 2009, from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm in the Montpelier Room of the Library of Congress, James Madison Building, 6th Floor, 101 Independence Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20559.

Provisional Meeting Agenda:

The meeting will include discussion of various topics raised in the March 26 Federal Register Notice, as well as topics raised by interested parties in the written comments and reply comments requested by that Notice. The meeting will be organized into panels by subject matter. Panel participants will have an opportunity to make brief statements, in addition to responding to questions from Copyright Office and USPTO representatives.
The following tentative agenda lists the topics that will be explored at the meeting.  The topics covered at the meeting might be revised based on information learned from the written comments and reply comments. During each panel specified below, the Copyright Office and USPTO will seek information on experiences accessing U.S. works or sharing accessible copies within the United States, experiences accessing foreign works or sharing accessible copies of U.S works with foreign persons, and proposed measures for facilitating and enhancing access to copyrighted works. Following receipt of comments and requests to participate in the meeting, a revised agenda will be posted on the website of the United States Copyright Office no later than Monday, May 11, 2009.

9:30 am – 10:00 am
Welcome      
Introductory Remarks re: Nature of Inquiry, U.S. Legal and Regulatory Framework, and International Framework

10:00 am – 11:30 am 
Panel I
Access to Copyrighted Works for the Blind or Other Persons with Disabilities under Existing U.S. Statutory and Regulatory Provisions:

• General considerations related to copyrighted works (17 U.S.C. § 121(a))
• Specific considerations related to instructional materials (17 U.S.C. § 121(c))
• Technical considerations (formats, programs and devices)
• Resource considerations (governmental, private sector, nonprofit, and philanthropic)
• Common considerations related to access to copyrighted works for the blind, other persons with disabilities, and the general reading public
  

11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Panel II
Existing Initiatives Affecting Access to Copyrighted Works for the Blind or Other Persons with Disabilities: 

• Library Programs
• Private Sector Initiatives (Commercial and Nonprofit)

1:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Lunch break              

2:30 pm – 5:15 pm
Panel III
Possible Actions to Facilitate and Enhance Access to Copyrighted Works for the Blind or Other Persons with Disabilities:

• Developing standardized accessibility formats and other technical norms
• Establishing trusted intermediaries to coordinate resources, eliminate unnecessary duplication of accessible works, and ensure best practices
• Providing technical assistance, coordination, and educational outreach
• Promoting market-based solutions achieved through private sector copyright licenses or other agreements 
• Developing binding or non-binding international instruments, including a treaty that would establish minimum requirements for limitations and exceptions for blind, visually impaired and other reading-disabled persons                      

5:15 pm
Concluding Remarks 

Requirements to Participate:

Members of the public are invited to attend the meeting.  Due to the capacity of the meeting room, it might become necessary to limit the number of persons who are permitted in the meeting room at a particular time. Persons wishing to participate in the meeting are required to submit requests to participate. Requests must include the following information:

1. The name of the participant.
2. The organization or organizations (if any) represented by the participant.
3. Contact information including email address, telephone number and mailing address. 
4. The preferred panel topic, based on the topics listed in the provisional agenda above. For requests to participate in multiple panels, please state the order of preference.
5. A brief summary of the statement the requestor would make on the topic.
6. A description of any exhibits, such as examples of devices, that would be presented or demonstrated at the meeting. 
7. A description of material (if any) that would be distributed at the meeting.  Participants are strongly encouraged to include any supplemental materials with their comments or reply comments rather than bringing materials to the meeting.

Depending on the number and nature of the requests to participate in the meeting, it is possible that the Copyright Office and USPTO will be unable to accommodate all requests. A timely request to participate does not guarantee an opportunity to participate in a meeting panel. In order to avoid duplicative and cumulative statements and to ensure that all relevant issues and viewpoints are addressed, parties with similar interests are encouraged to select common representatives to advocate a particular position. 

All persons who submit a request to participate will receive confirmation by email or telephone.  All panel participants will be notified of the topic of the panel(s) on which they will participate, the approximate time of the panel and the amount of time allocated for their initial statement on the panel topic.

Any materials that will be used or distributed at the meeting and are not included in written comments or reply comments must be submitted in advance to the Copyright Office by 5:00 pm E.D.T. on Wednesday, May 13. Materials must be sent to copsccr@loc.gov. Please note that such materials will be provided to the government panelists and made available on the website, but will not be otherwise copied or distributed for persons attending the meeting.

In addition, participants intending to bring technical exhibits, such as devices, to the meeting are required to provide to the Copyright Office a brief description of such exhibits by 5:00 pm E.D.T. on Wednesday, May 13. Participants are encouraged to arrive early in order to clear security screening by the Library Police. The Madison Building opens to the public at 8:30 am.

Procedure for Submitting Requests:

Requests to participate in the meeting must be submitted via the website form located at www.copyright.gov/sccr/participate. Requests must be received by 5:00 pm E.D.T. on Monday, April 27, 2009.  Requests that do not provide all the required information may be considered untimely. Persons who are unable to send requests via the website should contact Paula Pinha, Attorney-Advisor, Office of Policy and International Affairs, 202-707-7845, to make alternative arrangements for submission of their requests to participate in the meeting.

Dated:  April 8, 2009