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Librarian of Congress Appoints Three Copyright Royalty Judges

Librarian of Congress James H. Billington today swore in three copyright royalty judges—James S. Sledge, Stanley C. Wisniewski and William J. Roberts—who will oversee the copyright law’s statutory licenses, setting rates and determining the distribution of royalties.

The judges were appointed in accordance with the Copyright Royalty and Distribution Reform Act of 2004, which became effective in mid 2005. They will oversee statutory licenses, which are licenses that permit qualified parties to use multiple copyrighted works without obtaining separate licenses from each copyright owner. The duties of the judges will include determining and adjusting the rates and terms of the licenses and determining the distribution of royalties from the statutory license royalty pools administered by the Library of Congress.

At the Library of Congress ceremony this morning, Billington said, “It is particularly appropriate that the Copyright Royalty Board is a part of the Library of Congress. The Library has had a long tradition for more than a century and a quarter now of administering the copyright law.” He also applauded Congress as a leader in cultural preservation. “To preserve the rich variety of private creativity is a unique feature of this Library, this legislature and, of course, of the Copyright Office; beyond that, the copyright law is fundamentally a law about culture and the Library is one of the nation’s pre-eminent cultural institutions.” Read more at loc.gov

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