What do we, as
book writers, want for ourselves in the digital age?
Having asked this question of dozens of book authors and
other writers,
The Writers' Union of Canada presents the following twelve
rights for Canadian authors. They are not written in stone.
The publishing and digital landscapes are changing too quickly
for that. Our goal is to encourage thought and discussion
and to encourage action that respects writers' rights. Next
year our statement may look different. For now the question
is, What are our core demands and principles with respect
to our rights in the digital age? Here is what we propose.
To Respect the Rights of the Creators of Literary Works
in Canada:
1
Copyright legislation shall ensure the protection
of intellectual property and appropriate compensation for
rightsholders.
2
Exceptions to copyright shall be minimized.
3
The publisher shall split the net proceeds of ebook
sales equally with the author.
4
The author shall retain all electronic rights not
specifically granted to the publisher or producer and shall
have approval of any modifications made to the work.
5
The publisher shall not exercise or sublicense ebook
publishing rights without the express authorization of the
author.
6
When a book is out of print in print form, continuing
sales in electronic form shall not prevent a rights reversion
to the author.
7
For ebooks, the publisher in its contract shall replace
the traditional “out of print” clause that triggers
a rights reversion with a sales volume clause (e.g., less
than a specified quantity of ebooks sold in a specified number
of royalty periods) and/or a finite term of license (e.g.,
five years).
8
When rights revert, the publisher shall provide the
author with the digital file of the book.
9
The Public Lending Right Commission shall provide
author payments for electronic books and allot additional
monies to this end.
10
Libraries shall acquire digital copies of works in
their collections only from rightsholders or their licensing
agencies.
11
Ebook retailers shall require the rightsholder’s
permission for any free preview or download of an electronic
work, and the rightsholder shall specify the maximum amount
to be made available.
12
Agents, publishers, aggregators, retailers, and libraries
shall ensure that works in digital form will be well protected
and will not be shared, traded, or sold outside the boundaries
authorized by the contract.
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THE WRITERS' BILL OF RIGHTS IN PDF
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