[Web4lib] Copyright and Book cover images

[Osp Viggosdottir]

Hi.

I run a? bookstore with new and used books. I use Google's image search for
locating book covers, with excellent results (for books less than 10 years
old, if the books are older, you may be lucky - or not). They include both
Amazon's and various other booksellers' book covers, and Google shows you
the resolution, so you can pick a suitable size.

And if nothing works, I simply scan them.

Copyright issues?
- Displaying the cover promotes the book and the author. Haven't heard any
publisher complain over it lately. It used to be an issue, but I think the
publishers must have changed the contracts they made with cover/font
designers, because of the immense promotional value. Do newspapers,
magazines, TV-stations, etc., in fact, does any media where books are
discussed pay special copyright fees when promoting a book and showing its
cover? Never heard of it.
- How is Amazon going to tell if a cover that is available in tens or
hundreds of copies on the Net comes from them? They can't. Use your own
naming system and resize them to suit you.
- Running after copyright in this case really is impossible. We are not
talking about 20 or 50 books, we are talking about thousands and thousands
of titles published in hundreds of languages every year. And many of the
covers have different copyright holders for font, layout, photos on cover,
overall design etc.


Cheers,
Me? kve?ju,

Osp Viggosdottir
framkvamdastjori
osp at haraldur.is

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 Haraldur ikorni ehf
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 s. 557 5613 / 862 5710

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 vsk.nr. 70982
 haraldur at haraldur.is
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-----Original Message-----
From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org]On Behalf Of TUCKER-RAYMOND
Caleb
Sent: 12. mars 2007 17:40
To: Andrew Nagy; Will Kurt
Cc: web4lib at webjunction.org
Subject: RE: [Web4lib] Copyright and Book cover images




> The main caveat to this is you must include a link back to
> the item on amazon's website for the use of the images.

You may also link to the Amazon homepage instead of to the specific
item. This is useful if you are interested in using the content and are
appreciative that Amazon supplies it, but don't want to endorse the
purchase of a specific product.

As for other routes, Syndetics Solutions (http://www.syndetics.com/)
licenses image and book summary data to libraries.

Caleb Tucker-Raymond

(503) 988-5438
calebt at multcolib.org
AIM/Y!: calebMCL
www.oregonlibraries.net
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