-------- Original Message -------- Subject: RE: Scanned map copyright question Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2012 16:09:18 -0400 From: Grabach, Kenneth A. Mr. <[log in to unmask]> To: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship <[log in to unmask]> Rick describes the same understanding I have, and have been given by the copyright experts at my library. I try to explain to users of my map collection that copying a map is essentially copying an entire work. The 1923 watershed date is part of this understanding, as well. And this creates a particular problem in searching out copyright holders. An item produced after 1923 can easily be 'out-of-print' but still 'in' copyright. Sometimes identifying current holders is a challenge. Sometimes searches yield no results. That the person intends, at the least, to create a database only adds to the challenge, because it really is necessary to secure permissions if possible. This project is a long way from what is allowable under fair use, as each map is being copied (digital counts as much as any other reproduction), and as the entire body of maps is intended to be retained, presumably to be shared with other users. And admittedly, in some cases to be reproduced in published articles. The projects I've known of involve either reproducing items in the public domain, or of a single work or body of work that makes the copyright searching task more finite and simpler. Ken Grabach <[log in to unmask]> Maps Librarian Phone: 513-529-1726 Miami University Libraries Oxford, Ohio 45056 USA -----Original Message----- From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope, American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee Sent: Friday, July 20, 2012 3:56 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Scanned map copyright question -------- Original Message -------- Subject: RE: Scanned map copyright question Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2012 19:54:21 +0000 From: Rick Grapes <[log in to unmask]> To: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship <[log in to unmask]> Mary, I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but from my understanding of copyright law and maps, the answer to your question is Yes. He will need to get permission. And please, anyone who knows better than I, please chime in. Maps generally do not fall under the fair use rules were you can copy or digitize a page or two from a book. You are dealing with the entire item from neat line to neat line, much like if you were to photo copy all 360 pages of a book. Now anything pre 1923 is outside copyright, as are U.S. government publications no matter the date. So if your materials are pre 1923, you're OK. Also, someone cannot copyright geographical shapes, continents, river meanders etc., but the intellectual information contained within those shapes is copyrighted, post 1923. Finally, just because the professor made minor changes to the image, doesn't change anything. Unless you were to start with a simple shape file of let's say Central America, and add all the details yourself, you'll have copyright issues. My experience is that most authors love to have their materials spread around on the net. And especially if it's been a few years, and even though the copyright is still in place, the fi! nancial benefits are beginning to wane. They don't mind having new life injected into their cherished work materials. Again, if anyone sees a problem with my explanation, feel free to correct things. All for now, Rick Grapes BYU Map Collection -----Original Message----- From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope, American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee Sent: Friday, July 20, 2012 12:47 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Scanned map copyright question ------- Original Message -------- Subject: Scanned map copyright question Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2012 18:07:33 +0000 From: Mary Whelan <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> I'm hoping someone on the list can provide guidance on this question. An archaeology professor is starting a project where he is starting with published books (about archaeological sites in Central America), *scanning the plan maps of architectural monuments from the books (temples, pyramids, etc.), *georeferencing the scans using GIS software, *digitizing the georeferenced scans by hand to create a GIS vector file *slightly modifying the GIS vector file to eliminate lines that they don't want (not wall or architectural detail changes, but eliminating lines from the figure in the book. His question is, does he need copyright permission from the book publisher for each map? Or, because he is digitizing and editing (slightly), is citing the original source enough? Thanks in advance for any answers you can provide, Mary Mary Whelan, Ph.D. /Geospatial and Research Data Manager/ /Informatics and Cyberinfrastructure Services/ /401DA Hayden Library/ /Arizona State University/ /P.O. Box 871006/ /Tempe, AZ 85287-1006/ [log in to unmask] /480-727-2004/