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Items . English language schools in Spotlight for Breach of Copyright
 25-11-2008
Three private training institutions have been put on notice for allegedly breaching print copyright as the nationwide crackdown on copyright infringement continues.
Auckland Goldstar Institute, Prime International College and Sheffield Language School - all based in Auckland - have received letters from lawyers acting for New Zealand’s print copyright watchdog, Copyright Licensing Ltd (CLL) alleging copyright infringement.
The schools were discovered to be copying extensive extracts from one or more of English language text books published by Cambridge University Press, Peter Collin Publishers, Pearson Education (NZ) and Pearson Education (UK) and on-selling them to students. Both actions are illegal without an appropriate licence.
General Manager of Pearson Education (NZ), Adrian Keane, says copying large amounts of text then making it available for sale is blatant copyright theft.
‘Schools that copy large amounts of texts or entire books are breaking the law.’
Copying from published works is an infringement of the Copyright Act 1994 and deprives publishers and authors of revenue from the sale or licensing of their works.
Last month Snap Printing East Tamaki and Snap Printing North Harbour received infringement notices from CLL’s lawyers for copying the entire contents of the book, AME Year 13 Calculus Workbook and on-selling it to customers.
CLL’s Chief Executive, Kathy Sheat, says all schools and educational institutions must make copyright awareness and compliance in their institutions a priority.
‘Information on copyright licences and copyright protection is easily obtainable. Where we find evidence of breach of copyright we can and will take action in order to protect the interests of writers and publishers.’
‘When schools and teachers systematically copy large extracts from copyright works to provide to students, without authority or remuneration to the copyright owner, they are likely to face legal action for copyright infringement.’
‘Sometimes inadvertent breaches of copyright occur. However, this does not absolve the schools or teachers from responsibility.’
Prime claims that the copying by a substitute teacher was inadvertent and has invited CLL to provide seminars for its staff on copyright compliance.
The institutions have all agreed to stop making illegal photocopies of copyright works for students and to take up backdated licences with CLL that will permit copying of up to 10% of a work for students. This will ensure that their copying is legal and that the copyright owners will receive remuneration for that copying. The schools will also ensure that they have appropriate copyright compliance guidelines in place for the future and that their staff are fully aware of copyright.
Copyright Licensing Ltd is a non-profit copyright collective, looking after the interests of publishers and authors in New Zealand. CLL is part of a global network of copyright collectives that provide centralised licensing services for the reproduction of extracts from published works.
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