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Under UK copyright law, it is normally illegal to modify or adapt copyright material without permission from the owner. But the Copyright (Visually Impaired Persons) Act 2002 and the latest Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) Higher Education licence have both made the provision of accessible copies possible for those with a visual impairment (the Act and the licence) or other disability (CLA licence only). An accessible copy is not limited to the ‘fair dealing’ limits of the Act or those of the CLA licence: if necessary, the whole of a copyright work may be copied.
This guide outlines what the Act and the licence permit, the key differences between them, and some useful information on obtaining material in alternative formats. Please note that if you require a digital edition of a whole textbook for a visually impaired student, you should try the publisher first rather than attempt to scan the whole book. Many publishers are now set up to supply PDF files for this purpose. See the JISC TechDis guide and Publisher Lookup UK service, mentioned under ‘Further information’ below.
The CLA licence: visually impaired and disabled persons
The latest Higher Education CLA licence (2008) includes a new section which allows for the provision of an ‘accessible copy’ of a copyright protected work to staff and students in the university with ‘any kind of visual, cognitive or other disability recognised in the Disability Discrimination Act’. This is broader than the scope of the Copyright (Visually Impaired Persons) Act in terms of disability but is limited to Authorised Persons and Licensed Materials as defined by the main CLA licence. So it is only members of the university who can benefit from this new right, only material owned by the university which may be copied, and material copied must only be used for those educational purposes stipulated in the CLA licence.
The rights and requirements of the CLA licence regarding visually impaired and disabled persons are as follows:
- the university must own an original published edition of the work to be copied;
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the accessible copy must only be used for the benefit of ‘authorised persons’ (members of the university covered by the licence);
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the work must not be otherwise commercially available in a suitable alternative accessible format;
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an accessible copy may be in digital or audio format, large or small print, embossed copies (eg Moon or Braille) or in another format, as suits the needs/disability of the user;
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type size enlargement/reduction, alternative fonts, colour adjustments (font or background), web navigational tools, and other techniques designed to make content more accessible to specific users is permitted;
a) this statement: “This copy is made under the terms of the CLA VIP Licence to be used only by a visually impaired or disabled person. Except as permitted by law, it may not be further copied (including any electronic copying or transmission), nor may it be supplied to any other person, without permission”;
b) the title, author and publisher of the original work and the published edition from which it is copied.
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any charge for the supply of an accessible copy must not exceed the cost of making and supplying it;
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the right to make accessible copies under the terms of the licence is a separate one from the permission to make digital copies. There is no requirement to include entries for accessible copies on the Digital Copy Record Sheet (see ‘Scanning copyright material for studentcentral’ at http://www.brighton.ac.uk/is/copyright)
The Copyright (Visually Impaired Persons) Act 2002
The Copyright (Visually Impaired Persons) Act 2002 (CVIPA) amends the Copyright Design and Patents Act 1988, allowing accessible copies of copyright material to be made by and for people with sight problems. Although limited to visual impairment, the scope of the Act is broader than that of the CLA licence as it is not limited to members of the institution holding the licence or to copyright works owned by the licence holder.
A Visually Impaired Person (VIP) is defined in the Act as a person:
- who is blind;
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who has an impairment of visual function which cannot be improved, by the use of corrective lenses, to a level that would normally be acceptable for reading without a special level or kind of light;
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who is unable, through physical disability, to hold or manipulate a book;
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who is unable, through physical disability, to focus or move his eyes to the extent that would normally be acceptable for reading.
Note that, although this definition goes beyond ‘blind and partially sighted’, it does not extend to dyslexia or other learning difficulties. But severe dyslexia does fall within the Disability Discrimination Act’s definition of disability so help can be offered to dyslexic students under the CLA licence.
An ‘accessible copy’ is defined as ‘a version which provides for a visually impaired person improved access to the work’. The Act allows accessible copies of copyright material to be made for visually impaired people in formats such as Braille, large print, digital and audiotape. It covers published literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works such as books, journals, instruction manuals, advertisements, maps, etc. Databases, film and sound recordings, and performed or recorded music are not covered. Digital works are covered as well as print material. Like the CLA licence, the CVIPA does not allow copying if an accessible copy in substantially the same form is available commercially (eg making an audio or large print version of Lord of the Rings would not be permitted as these could be bought off the shelf).
The CVIPA provides for a single accessible copy for personal use (‘one-for-one’ copying) and allows for multiple copying (now covered by the CLA licence). The copy may be made by or on behalf of a visually impaired person, subject to a number of conditions:
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The visually impaired person must own or be able to lawfully use (e.g. through a library) an (inaccessible) copy of the copyright work.
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The accessible copy must be accompanied by a sufficient acknowledgement (ie details of author, title, publisher, edition etc) and a statement that it has been made under this Act (eg “This is an accessible copy made under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 as amended by the Copyright (Visually Impaired Persons) Act 2002).”
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The accessible copy can only be transferred to another visually impaired person (ie passed from one VIP to another or stored by the university for later use by another VIP).
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the original print copy must remain with any accessible versions, so that only one person can 'read' the work at any one time, as with print.
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If a person makes an accessible copy on behalf of a visually impaired person and charges for it, the sum charged must not exceed the cost of making and supplying the copy.
Further information
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JISC TechDis and The Publishers Association have together produced a Guide to obtaining textbooks in alternative formats. Obtaining a digital version of a textbook direct from the publisher will often be the quickest way to satisfy visually impaired students, especially if they need whole textbooks rather than the odd chapter. See here or ask your Information Adviser for advice/help.
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JISC TechDis are also working with publishers to create a database to make it easier to find key contact details for UK publishers and what to expect from publishers in terms of accessible electronic files. The database, entitled Publisher Lookup UK, can be found at http://www.publisherlookup.org.uk/index.php
This document is intended for guidance only and does not constitute legal advice.
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