International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) backs Controlled Digital Lending

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Last week, the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) voiced its strong support for the longstanding and widespread library practice of Controlled Digital Lending (CDL). In doing so, they join a host of libraries and library associations in asserting the right of libraries to own, digitize and lend materials online. IFLA is the leading international body representing … Read more

Brewster Kahle named to the Library of Congress’ Copyright Public Modernization Committee

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The Library of Congress announced that Brewster Kahle, Digital Librarian and founder of the Internet Archive, has been named to the Copyright Public Modernization Committee (CPMC), with a mission to help modernize the technology-related aspects of the U.S. Copyright Office. More specifically the CPMC will support “the development of the new Enterprise Copyright System (ECS), which includes … Read more

Internet Archive Launches Collaborative, Web-Based Art Resources Preservation and Access Initiative

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Much of the art gallery, artist, and arts organization materials that were once published in print form are now available primarily or solely on the web. These groups, like many in the cultural sector, have also been hit especially hard by the global pandemic, making their web presences particularly at-risk of being lost if they … Read more

Librarians Convene to Develop Strategies for Documenting Their Community’s Digital Heritage

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A group of librarians and cultural heritage workers from across the country recently convened at two events hosted by Internet Archive’s Community Webs program. Made possible in part with support from the Mellon Foundation, the meetings allowed librarians from across the country to discuss shared challenges and opportunities around documenting, preserving, and sharing the unique culture and … Read more

Registration Now Open For Two New Workshops on Controlled Digital Lending

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In an effort to help more people understand how Controlled Digital Lending works, the Internet Archive is helping coordinate two sessions in July. Both sessions are free, virtual, and open to the public. Empowering Libraries Through Controlled Digital Lending – July 13 The Internet Archive’s Open Libraries program empowers libraries to lend digital books to patrons … Read more

Remembering Sherwin Siy

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Last week the public interest Internet community lost one of its most passionate advocates, and I lost a friend. On July 7th, I learned that Sherwin Siy, Policy Counsel for the Wikimedia Foundation and my classmate at Berkeley Law School, had suddenly passed away at the age of 40. Sherwin and I began our public … Read more

Forgotten Novels of the 19th Century

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Guest blog by Professor Tom Gally If you’ve spent much time reading 19th-century novels, you’ve probably run across characters doing the same thing—that is, reading novels. In Barchester Towers, Eleanor sits “in the window to get the advantage of the last daylight for her novel.” Anna Karenina waits for her husband “in front of the fireplace with her English novel.” … Read more

Reflections as the Internet Archive turns 25

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Photo by Rory Mitchell, The Mercantile, 2020 – CC by 4.0 A Library of Everything As a young man, I wanted to help make a new medium that would be a step forward from Gutenberg’s invention hundreds of years before.  By building a Library of Everything in the digital age, I thought the opportunity was not … Read more