Understandably, the state of copyright law was not at the front of everyone’s minds in the library field in 2020. Much more immediate concerns – how to continue to fulfil missions with the doors closed, how to provide services in a way that doesn’t put staff or users at risk – were top of mind. […]
Read moreOn the 15th of December 2020, the European Commission launched its long-awaited reform on the regulation of major online platforms, the Digital Services Act (DSA). This comes alongside a proposal named the Digital Markets Act (DMA) which aims to address concerns about competition (or a lack thereof) in the technology sector and its impacts. At […]
Read moreEarlier this year, we published a blog looking at the degree to which competition law and policy could provide a useful lens for analysing the current state of markets for electronic content for libraries. As highlighted in the blog, the prices and terms that libraries face for electronic content raise serious concerns about the sustainability […]
Read moreSo much library advocacy is about funding – ensuring that our institutions have the support necessary to carry out their missions. This can be more or less explicit, from directly campaigning for stable or increased budgets, to working to ensure libraries are featured in wider policy plans which provide the basis for allocating resources later. […]
Read moreToday marks World Habitat Day, created in 1985 in order to draw attention to the importance of safe and adequate housing, located in a place that enables residents to access public green and open spaces, employment opportunities, health-care services, schools, childcare centres and other social facilities. This is a key issue. Those who do not […]
Read moreThe COVID-19 pandemic is having a huge impact on our lives, societies and economies. Millions have fallen ill, and billions have faced restrictions on their movements, with early evidence indicating serious economic consequences. The next months will reveal more about how quickly it will be safe to lift the controls in place, and what the […]
Read moreMay 3rd marks the annual World Press Freedom Day, and this year’s dedicated campaign launched by UNESCO focuses on the theme “journalism without fear or favour”. This day puts the spotlight on challenges to press freedom and independence, safety of journalists, and gender equality in media. For libraries, these issues are of course deeply connected to their core mission and values of access to information and intellectual freedom.
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