WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg Senate voted on Tuesday, May 22, 2012 to establish its own copyright procedures and policies on campus, effective immediately.
UWinnipeg is opting out of its copyright clearance service agreement with Access Copyright for three main reasons:
- Budgetary concerns Access Copyright is increasing UWinnipeg’s annual rate from $4.00 per student to $26.00 per student with no persuasive rationale for an increase of that magnitude.
- Redundancy issues The UWinnipeg Library already invests substantial monies each year for licenses to provide access to online journals and other databases for which an agreement with Access Copyright is unnecessary.
- Protection of privacy and academic freedom
“The UWinnipeg community, including faculty, staff, students, our senior executive and Senate, is united in the decision to build on our in-house expertise and create a Campus Copyright Unit,” said Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, President and Vice-Chancellor. “By investing our resources here at home we are confident we can find the right balance that will protect copyrighted materials while allowing us to maintain our decision-making autonomy as a University.”
The University of Winnipeg copyright procedures and policies will be administered by the Dean of the Library and the University Library staff. Institutional oversight will be provided by a Joint Copyright Committee comprised of faculty, students and administration.
UWinnipeg’s new Library’s copyright service will be fully functional by Fall 2012.
MEDIA CONTACT
Diane Poulin, Communications Officer, The University of Winnipeg
P: 204.988.7135, E: d.poulin@uwinnipeg.ca
