On Tue, Jul 21, 2009 at 4:27 AM, Francis
Jayakanth<franc_at_ncsi.iisc.ernet.in> wrote:
>
> Since Jan 2009, our repository (eprints.iisc.ernet.in), has been using
> the GNU Eprints.org version, which supports reprint request. Since
> then, on an average, we receive about 20-25 reprint request everyday!
> [...] Will there be any copyright-related issues if the reprint
request
> process is automated?
>
It is in fact already almost automated, as neither the requester and the
author (or someone acting on his behalf) have to write e-mails or (in
the case of the author) look for the right file to attach. So we're left
with one keystroke per article requested, which isn't going to take much
time, even if a single person receives all the requests for the
closed-access articles in an IR, which seems to be the case for your IR.
I don't see much gain in a fully automated process.
But I have to say that here at Universite du Quebec a Montreal's
Archipel repository, we don't ask the requester to state any reason for
his or her request. Instead, the form in which the requester enters its
e-mail address indicates prominently that it must be for a use allowed
by copyright law, for instance private study, research, review or
criticism (by the way, this covers your other concern). Likewise, the
e-mail generated (again upon a single click) by the author or in his
name, accepting the request, repeats that the use must be lawful. As the
university's lawyers gave their consent to this scheme (and they tend
normally to be overly cautious in these matters) I suppose one shouldn't
be concerned about any copyright infringement.
I may add that unless there would be some kind of massive request for a
single article, (and, as Stevan Harnad suggested, with 20-25 requests
for the entire repository it's not likely to be the case), one doesn't
have to worry about the issue.
Marc Couture
Tele-universite (Universite du Quebec a Montreal)
mcouture_at_teluq.uqam.ca
http://www.teluq.uqam.ca/spersonnel/mcouture/home.htm
Received on Wed Jul 22 2009 - 00:40:59 BST