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Databases exploited by digital libraries can be categorized mainly into three types: bibliographical database, abstract (or digest) database and full-text database. Speaking generally, bibliographical ones do not involve in copyright. The only thing merits compiler’s attention is to protect the personality right of author, such as the right of authorship and the right of integrity of his works. As to abstract (or digest) and index ones, they pertain to the field of statutory license in copyright law. Article 32 of China’s copyright law provides that except where the copyright owner has declared that reprinting or excerpting is not permitted, other newspaper or periodical publishers may, after the publication of the work by a newspaper or periodical, reprint the work or print an abstract of it or print it as reference material, but such other publishers shall pay remuneration to the copyright owner as prescribed in regulations. By virtue of this stipulation the digital library may, after paying reward, abstract or index the works published in newspapers or journals into database.
In addition, the Supreme People’s Court of China reissues on 23 December 2003 a revised judicial interpretation titled “Interpretation on Application of Laws When Trying Dispute Cases Concerning Computer Network Copyright”20 in which a provision relating to the statutory license on online works was included. In article 2 of interpretation it states: works under protection of copyright law, includes the digitalized form of works described by copyright law in article 3. Other intellectual creations that unable to merge into the scope of works listed by the article 2 of copyright law under network environment but have the originality in the literary, artistic and scientific domain, insofar as they are capable of being reproduced in a certain tangible form, must be protected by people’s court. Pursuant to article 3 of the interpretation, the works, already published in newspaper and periodicals or distributed on network, can be reproduced, excerpted by the network site without committing infringement if the works have been paid and designated the source, unless the works have been declared copyrighted by the owner of the copyright and network service providers who upload the works have been told that the works cannot be reproduced and excerpted without permission. But in case that the works which are reproduced and excerpted by the site go beyond the category concerned, such as the reproduce of audio and video products as well as computer software, it should be identified as infringement. These databases being compiled subject to statutory license shall be the priority project of digital library in its digitalized resource construction.
In the case to constructing a full-text database, however, digital library should act with care. Except those works that already fallen into the public domain, permission shall be acquired in advance from the copyright owners of works. According to the Provisions of Copyright on Compiling Digitalized Works promulgated by the National Copyright Administration of China, digital library “may acquire permission directly from copyright owner of the utilized work or from an organization for collective administration of copyright.”
database Compiler and organization for collective administration of copyright
In digitalization of its holdings the digital library should, first of all, classify the materials to be digitalized in the light of their nature of copyright and then handle them respectively. Generally, documents in a library include three categories: works that are still in their term of copyright protection; works already entered into public sphere; and works that beyond the protection of copyright law, such as legal documents, governmental information and factual reports, etc. When using the works that have not entered into public domain to compile a database the digital library shall conclude beforehand a licensing contract with the copyright owners to obtain their permission. A licensing contract shall, pursuant to article 24 of China’s copyright law, include the following basic clauses:
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