I’ve just submitted a response to the Intellectual Property Office on their proposed amendments to the education exemptions to UK copyright law. These aim to extend the same permissions for distance learning as currently apply to the premises of an educational establishment. From Janet’s point of view as operator of a network and an access management federation, there are a couple of odd wordings:
- The proposed exemption talks about ‘networks’ when it is actually referring to access management functions;
- The exemption covers remote learners, but doesn’t cover remote tutors (or even local ones who happen to be working from home when developing their courses).
I’m told that both points were raised at a recent meeting with the IPO and that their intentions are indeed that the exemptions should cover the current ways that distance learning is delivered.
