"The World Intellectual Property Organisation, the body that frames intellectual property law internationally, is clear that limitations and exceptions such as fair dealing and library privilege are as relevant tothe digital environment as they are to the its analogue equivalent. However, out of thirty licensing agreements recently offered to the Library for use of digital material, twenty-eight were found to be more restrictive than the rights existing under current copyright law... Our concern is that, if unchecked, this trend will drastically reduce public access, thus significantly undermining the strength and vitality of our creative and educational sectors - with predictable consequences for UK plc."

I am a member of the Strategy Advisory group of the British Library and so I guess a bit conflicted but my suspicion is that the outcome of this debate will have significant repercussions for the publishing community as well as for libraries. The heart of the matter is the tension between the rights of the content user as a member of society versus the rights of the content creator. Difficult stuff but vital to get it right.