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South Africans should be able to make fair use of copyright materials. Fair use is important for technological innovation, reverse engineering, education and access to knowledge. Contracts and anti-circumvention rules should not be allowed to prevent South Africans from making fair use of copyright materials. South Africans should be able to bulk import copyright works including textbooks legitimately purchased outside South Africa.
Here is a summary of APC’s recommendations to a Draft Amendment of the 1978 Copyright Act:
- That the 1978 Copyright Act be amended to insert a provision closely resembling the United States fair use provision. This provision would operate in addition to the existing exceptions and other exceptions introduced in the amendment process.
- That the 1978 Copyright Act be amended to insert a provision that explicitly prevents contractual terms from nullifying statutory user rights in copyright (exceptions and limitations) such as fair use. The provision should render contractual provisions that purport to nullify or exclude the operation of exceptions and limitations unenforceable.
- That the 1978 Copyright Act be amended to insert a provision that explicitly authorises circumvention of technical measures that prevent the use of exceptions and limitations in the Copyright Act.
- That the 1978 Copyright Act be amended to allow anyone to import into South Africa copyright works such as textbooks that are lawfully made in another country.
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