Publisher and union clash over e-rights

The attempted relaunch of Canada’s oldest book review publication is leading to a literary feud over electronic rights. The Periodical Writers Association of Canada maintains its members are having their work stolen. The owner of Books In Canada insists there isn’t a problem. Books In Canada was founded in 1971 as a forum for Canadian writers and features book reviews as a major part of its mandate. Its First Novel Award has been given to such luminaries as Michael Ondaatje, Anne Michaels and Rohinton Mistry. But in recent years the publication has fallen on hard times. Last year it suspended operations, with several staff and contributors claiming they had not been paid for their efforts. Last month Adrian Stein announced plans to begin again, backed up by a sponsorship deal with Amazon.com. PWAC, the union of freelance writers in this country, accuses Stein of planning to make the magazine’s 30-year archive available to Amazon.com without securing proper releases from the people who wrote the articles. Stein denies that. "They’re only going to be licensing a small portion of our archive. It’s a multiyear agreement," he explained to CNM. "And then they’re only licensing content for which we have received, or will be receiving, the proper legal signoffs, the proper copyright consent. And we recognize that we need to get everyone signed to agreements, that’s understood." But PWAC executive director Victoria Ridout said in a Jan. 17 letter to Stein that he had been posting Books In Canada material on his web site, refusing to remove it when the authors complained. "You have either claimed complete ownership of the Books In Canada archive — both print and electronic — or berated the writers involved for being ‘peevish and selfish’ for not surrendering their rights to you in the interest of ‘the public good’," she wrote in a letter released in the union’s news release. That’s all in the past, the publisher claims. "We’re interested in erring on the side of caution here," Stein told CNM. "I want to try to make that awfully clear despite the vituperative statements and threats of boycotts and all this crazy stuff." Stein and Ridout have been sending missives back and forth in an attempt to reach common ground. The magazine publisher says he has been cooperative. "I’ve tried to do everything possible. There’s nothing to resolve, there’s no issue here," he offers. "The copyright situation with regard to electronic rights and use on the Internet is quite complicated." Law clear, says RidoutIt’s not complicated at all, Ridout counters. "The law is very clear. You cannot use people’s work without their permission," she tells CNM. "He does not have any kind of contract with these writers." History would tend to prove Ridout correct. An American lawsuit, filed by Jonathan Tasini of the National Writers Union against the New York Times, has resulted in each level of the courts to rule in favour of the journalists. The Times is currently appealing its repeated losses to the U.S. Supreme Court. In Canada, Toronto freelancer Heather Robertson is entering her sixth year in a fight with Thomson Inc over the posting of material on the InfoGlobe site. PWAC has been solidly behind her in this battle. A similar contretemps is taking place in Quebec, where the freelance writers union is launching a class-action suit against several media outlets. A document supporting the writers was signed by many prominent people in the province, including retiring premier Lucien Bouchard, humourist Yvon Deschamps, playwright Michel Tremblay and poet Gilles Vigneault. Last year, Books In Canada’s primary competition, Quill & Quire, quietly settled with its writers. Contributors were sent cheques to cover electronic rights of previously published stories. The magazine announced an increase in freelance rates to cover the purchase of e-rights.

Publisher and union clash over e-rights

News | 02/07/2001 5:00 am EST

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