Principle 4: Libraries should receive copies of all digital files generated from their collections, with the option for complete local access to the files (to the extent that copyright law allows). Libraries should insist on the right to provide free local access to digitized materials from their holdings. They should determine on their own what constitutes a fair use of those digital files and make them available accordingly. Nothing in the contract with the commercial entity should limit the library’s right to make a fair use determination. Material that is of uncertain copyright status should be excluded from commercial products. Principle 5: Any enhancements or improvements to the digitized content should be shared on a regular basis with the supplying library. In addition to making material available to the public, research libraries should seek to provide context to aid in the understanding of that material. This is especially true with special collections materials, which often must be interpreted or analyzed. In order to preserve and provide context for digitized distinct collections, it is important that the contributing library receive on a regular basis copies of enhanced content and metadata about that content. This could include upgraded or replaced image files as well as corrected or improved OCR text. Principle 6: Restrictions on external access to copies of works digitized from a library’s holding should be of limited duration. In order to allow a commercial partner time to recover its investment in digitization, it may be necessary to grant to that entity exclusivity over the use of the digital files for a period of time. The ultimate goal, however, is to “ensure the results are widely available for scholarship.”4 The period of exclusivity, therefore, should be limited, preferably to no more than seven years. After that time period the library should be able to distribute freely any file digitized from its holdings. It should also be able to aggregate the content with other resources from its own collections and those of other institutions and to expose the content to data mining and other new ways of exploiting it. Principle 7: Libraries should refrain from signing nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) as part of digitization negotiations. At the ARL Membership Meeting, library directors were asked whether they RLI 267 23 The Collaborative Imperative: Special Collections in the Digital Age ( C O N T I N U E D ) DECEMBER 2009 RESEARCH LIBRARY ISSUES: A BIMONTHLY REPORT FROM ARL, CNI, AND SPARC
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