August 2016: The Australian Publishers Association (APA) and the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) came to a landmark agreement to allow libraries to use book covers to promote books and authors without seeking permission each time. They agreed on the value of an environment in which libraries can be confident, for promotional purposes, to reproduce images of book covers whose copyright is owned by Australian publishers.
The Australian Publishers Association and the Australian Library and Information Association agree that it is in everyone's interest for libraries to be able to reproduce images of book covers to promote library programs and collections and to connect readers with books and authors, for example in library displays, posters, catalogues, bookmarks and other marketing materials, social media posts and website pages. This is a landmark agreement to allow libraries to use book covers to promote books and authors without seeking permission each time. Parties agreed on the value of an environment in which libraries can be confident, for promotional purposes, to reproduce images of book covers whose copyright is owned by Australian publishers.
While libraries may already be able to rely on provisions in the Copyright Act to use copyright material for such promotional purposes, and while the Australian Publishers Association is not aware of any concerns by publishers about such uses – the Australian Publishers Association and the Australian Library and Information Association agree on the value of an environment in which libraries are free from doubt and feel confident, for promotional purposes, to reproduce the image of the cover of a book whose copyright is owned by Australian publishers.
It is the policy of the Australian Publishers Association that its members allow such use without any need for specific permission or payment.
Jolly Postman
September 2019: The Australian Publishers Association (APA), the Australian Society of Authors (ASA) and the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) came to an agreement to allow libraries to photocopy the pull-out elements of books so as to ensure that the originals are not lost by users, without seeking permission each time. They agreed on the value of an environment in which libraries can be confident of being able to ensure that books with pull-out material remain usable, where the copyright is owned by Australian publishers.
The Australian Booksellers Association (ABA), Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), Australian Publishers Association (APA) and Australian Society of Authors (ASA) have endorsed an industry agreement, which enables libraries to photocopy the removable inserts of children’s activity picture books. It’s dubbed the Jolly Postman agreement after the iconic 1986 book The Jolly Postman or Other People’s Letters by Janet and Allan Ahlberg. Parents will appreciate the difficulty of tracking down the tiny inserts at home and the problem is multiplied in a library setting.
This joint statement from the APA, ALIA and the ASA will remove doubt about whether libraries can continue lending the book after copying its removable parts, to avoid children being disappointed by missing pieces.
'The Australian Publishers Association (APA), the Australian Society of Authors (ASA) and the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) share a common goal for all children to be able to enjoy books and stories from the earliest years. Enjoyment of activity picture books relies on the inserts being available to every reader. To facilitate this, it is the policy of the APA and ASA that their members allow libraries to copy the inserts and replace them as needed during the borrowing life of the book, without the need for specific permission or additional payment to the copyright owner'.
This agreement follows on from an earlier agreement about the use of images of book covers by libraries to promote programs and collections.
Online Storytime agreement (2019-2021)
September 2019: The Australian Publishers Association (APA), the Australian Society of Authors (ASA) and the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) came to an agreement to allow libraries to present storytime events outside library premises without seeking permission each time. They agreed on the value of an environment in which libraries can be confident to put on storytime events outside of library premises where the copyright is owned by Australian publishers.
The Book Industry Roundtable is comprised of the Australian Booksellers Association (ABA), the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), the Australian Publishers Association (APA) and the Australian Society of Authors (ASA). All parties of the Book Industry Roundtable believe a reading nation is a better nation and that every child in Australia should have a reading start. They have expressed their willingness to collaborate to help. As part of this collaboration, the Roundtable parties have agreed to remove uncertainty about the legality of storytimes held outside the library premises.
Reading a picture book to a group of children in a library is not a breach of copyright, but librarians have been uncertain whether library exceptions in copyright law extend to storytimes outside library walls.
To remove doubt, ALIA, the APA and the ASA have made this joint statement:
'The Australian Publishers Association, the Australian Library and Information Association and the Australian Society of Authors share a common goal for all children to be able to enjoy books and stories from the earliest years. Library-run storytimes make this opportunity available to many families, including those without books at home.
While the Copyright Act enables the performance of a picture book in some circumstances, the APA, the ASA, and ALIA agree on the value of an environment in which libraries are free from doubt and feel confident to run important early literacy activities such as storytimes both at the library and elsewhere, for example at local festivals or as part of a community playgroup activity.
It is the policy of the Australian Publishers Association and the Australian Society of Authors that its members allow such use without any need for specific permission or payment.
This agreement does not cover the recording of a book reading, which continues to need permission from the copyright owner. The agreement on storytimes follows on from an earlier agreement between ALIA and the APA about the use of images of book covers by libraries to promote programs and collections.'
You can read about the program here: onlinestorytime.org.au