[nfbcs] National Federation of the Blind Responds toAuthors Guild Statement on the Amazon Kindle 2

Sat Feb 14 19:35:34 UTC 2009

We might want to team up with librarians and library organizations.  Library 
story hours use tapes, CD's and live readers to reach our children and 
encourage your youth to read the materials members of the writers guild put 
out.  If reading isn't encouraged, they will sell less books with or without 
calling audio copyright infringement.

Nancy Coffman----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kelly Ford" <kford at windows.microsoft.com>
To: "NFBnet NFBCS Mailing List" <nfbcs at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, February 13, 2009 9:43 AM
Subject: Re: [nfbcs] National Federation of the Blind Responds toAuthors 
Guild Statement on the Amazon Kindle 2

> Any quick web search should turn it up.  There is also a link on the web 
> site for the organization at 
> http://www.authorsguild.org/advocacy/articles/e-book-rights-alert-amazons-kindle-2.html.
>
> The last paragraph in that article talks about people with visual 
> impairments and says:
>
> Reading to your kids note: A Wall Street Journal article quoted a portion 
> of an interview with Authors Guild executive director Paul Aiken regarding 
> the Kindle 2. The remarks have been interpreted by some as suggesting that 
> the Guild believes that private out-loud reading is protected by 
> copyright. It isn't, unless the reading is being done by a machine. And 
> even out-loud reading by a machine is fine, of course, if it's from an 
> authorized audio copy. Others suggest that challenging Amazon's use of 
> this software challenges accessibility to the visually impaired. It 
> doesn't: Kindle 2 isn't designed for such use. The Guild continues to 
> support efforts to make works truly accessible to the visually impaired.
>
> Kelly
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf 
> Of Darrell Shandrow
> Sent: Friday, February 13, 2009 12:41 AM
> To: NFBnet NFBCS Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [nfbcs] National Federation of the Blind Responds to Authors 
> Guild Statement on the Amazon Kindle 2
>
> How can we learn more about the original Author's Guild statement? Does
> anyone have a link to it?
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Freeh,Jessica (by way of David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com>)"
> <JFreeh at nfb.org>
> To: <david.andrews at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, February 12, 2009 8:38 PM
> Subject: [nfbcs] National Federation of the Blind Responds to Authors 
> Guild
> Statement on the Amazon Kindle 2
>
>
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> CONTACT:
> Chris Danielsen
> Director of Public Relations
> National Federation of the Blind
> (410) 659-9314, extension 2330
> (410) 262-1281 (Cell)
> <mailto:cdanielsen at nfb.org>cdanielsen at nfb.org
>
> National Federation of the Blind Responds to Authors Guild
> Statement on the Amazon Kindle 2
>
> Baltimore, Maryland (February 12, 2009): The National Federation of
> the Blind, the largest organization of blind people in the United
> States, today responded to a statement put out by the Authors Guild
> advising its members to consider negotiating contracts prohibiting
> e-books to be read aloud by the new Amazon Kindle 2, which
> incorporates text-to-speech technology. The Authors Guild argues that
> the reading of a book out loud by a machine is a copyright
> infringement unless the copyright holder has specifically granted
> permission for the book to be read aloud.
>
> Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind,
> said: "The National Federation of the Blind supports all technologies
> that allow blind people to have better access to the printed word,
> including the ability of devices like the Kindle 2 to read commercial
> e-books aloud using text-to-speech technology. Although the Authors
> Guild claims that it supports making books accessible to the blind,
> its position on the inclusion of text-to-speech technology in the
> Kindle 2 is harmful to blind people. The Authors Guild says that
> having a book read aloud by a machine in the privacy of one's home or
> vehicle is a copyright infringement. But blind people routinely use
> readers, either human or machine, to access books that are not
> available in alternative formats like Braille or audio. Up until now,
> no one has argued that this is illegal, but now the Authors Guild
> says that it is. This is absolutely wrong. The blind and other
> readers have the right for books to be presented to us in the format
> that is most useful to us, and we are not violating copyright law as
> long as we use readers, either human or machine, for private rather
> than public listening. The key point is that reading aloud in private
> is the same whether done by a person or a machine, and reading aloud
> in private is never an infringement of copyright.
>
> "Amazon has taken a step in the right direction by including
> text-to-speech technology for reading e-books aloud on its new Kindle
> 2," Dr. Maurer continued. "We note, however, that the device itself
> cannot be used independently by a blind reader because the controls
> to download a book and begin reading it aloud are visual and
> therefore inaccessible to the blind. We urge Amazon to rectify this
> situation as soon as possible in order to make the Kindle 2 a device
> that truly can be used both by blind and sighted readers. By doing
> so, Amazon will make it possible for blind people to purchase a new
> book and begin reading it immediately, just as sighted people do."
>
>
>
> ###
>
>
>
> About the National Federation of the Blind
>
> With more than 50,000 members, the National Federation of the Blind
> is the largest and most influential membership organization of blind
> people in the United States. The NFB improves blind people's lives
> through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs
> encouraging independence and self-confidence. It is the leading force
> in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's blind. In
> January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of the Blind
> Jernigan Institute, the first research and training center in the
> United States for the blind led by the blind.
>
>
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