Comments of the Library Copyright Alliance on the Proposed Rulemaking Concerning Access to Electronic Works

"LCA supports adoption of the rule proposed by the Copyright Office. Under the current regulatory framework, 37 CFR § 202.18, the Library of Congress may provide limited on-site access to groups of newspapers electronically submitted for registration, as well as electronic serials and books submitted for mandatory deposit.1 The proposed rule would expand the categories of electronic deposits covered by the regulation with the same limitations on access as are currently in place.

As part of its Digital Collections Strategy, the Library is shifting towards an “e-preferred” approach across all its acquisition streams, including deposits received from the Office. In conjunction with the Library’s Digital Collections Strategy, the Office is encouraging the submission of works in electronic form. As more of these deposits are made in electronic formats, more of the Library’s collections are digital. Unless the existing on-site access rules are expanded to new categories of deposits, over time the public would have increasingly less access to works in the Library’s collections....

Because the proposed rule would benefit the public without harming copyright owners, LCA supports its adoption."