Cooking for Copyright
ALIA's advocacy tool, FAIR, is campaigning for copyright law reform – it’s long overdue.
The Cooking for Copyright campaign focused on one thing in particular, the fact that in Australia, while copyright is limited to 70 years after the death of the creator for published works, for unpublished works copyright lasts forever.
Unpublished works include old diaries, letters, company records, theses – even recipes. The copyright rules as they currently stand mean that these manuscripts, valuable pieces of social history, are locked away – to no one’s benefit. We’d like the same copyright terms for unpublished works as for published works.
The impact is felt by our big collecting institutions, museums, historical societies, university libraries and by public libraries with local history collections. These items cannot legally be digitised and made accessible to the community, family historians, researchers, and others who would find them a useful and fascinating resource.
Here's a story from WA that captures the essence of the problem - Dear Irene ... Lavender Blue.
And another beautiful story about A Grandmother's Legacy.
We asked FAIR supporters to stir up public interest in the reform of this archaic system with Cooking for Copyright Day on 31 July.
FAIR asked library and museum collections across Australia to supply lots of handwritten recipes which, according to the current law, shouldn’t be shared – but they were published on the FAIR website anyway. FAIR asked followers to cook up one of these recipes – or choose an old favourites – and send us a photo.
Photos were shared to friends online, posted to FAIR's facebook page. FAIR supporters were asked to use the hashtag #cookingforcopyright.
FAIR also asked for family recipes from the 1950s and earlier which were published to FAIR's facebook page as well.
Senator George Brandis, the Attorney General, who has the unenviable task of unravelling the current copyright regime. Senator Brandis is yet to provide a satisfactory response to the findings of the Australian Law Reform Commission report of February 2014 into Copyright and the Digital Economy.
Cooking for Copyright - Full Report
Cooking for Copyright - Summary
Media Coverage
- IFLA, 9 July
- SBS, 19 July
- ABC Radio National, 20 July
- ArtsHub, 21 July
- 6PR The Drive, Perth, 22 July
- ABC News 24, 22 July
- 3BA Radio Ballarat, 23 July
- Shire of Campaspe Media Release, 24 July
- ABC Newcastle Drive, 24 July
- 666 ABC Canberra, 24 July
- 91.7 ABC Gold Coast, 25 July
- Radio 4BC Brisbane, 25 July
- ABC Gippsland, 26 July
- ABC Mid North Coast
- 612 Brisbane
- 774 ABC Melbourne, 27 July
- City News, 27 July
- ACT Territory and Municipal Services Directorate Media Release, 27 July
- 4KQ Brisbane, 28 July
- ABC News (Web), 28 July
- 612 ABC Brisbane, 29 July
- 891 ABC Adelaide, 29 July
- Australian Film Television and Radio School - AFTRS FM, 30 July
- ABC Townsville, 31 July
- 891 ABC Adelaide, 31 July
- 2UE with Tim Webster, 1 August
- American Libraries Magazine
- CAMD
- Shepparton News
- Riverine Herald
- ASA ning
- Storify
- The City Journal
- International Librarians Network
- Australian Libraries Copyright Committee
- iDigital Times
- QUT Press Release
- Brisbane Times
- SL Blogs
- Tech Dirt
- Sarah Steed of Libraries ACT talks with Philip Clark on 666 ABC Canberra (18 mins in)
- ACT Government
- Mashable
- IP Pro The Internet
- Trademarks and Brands Online
- Choice Australia
- PS News
- The Age
- Canberra Times
- Brisbane Times
- Sydney Morning Herald
- National and State Libraries Australasia
- Sydney Review of Books
Resources
- A3 Poster
- A4 Poster
- Social media avatar
- Facebook banner
- Graphic
- Email signature
- Media release
- Media release - 20 July
- Media release - 27 July
- Australian Libraries Copyright Committee and Australian Digital Alliance information sheet
- FAQs
- Australian Copyright Council guidance on copyright for recipes
Recipes from the archives
Mustard (for profit by easy deception)
Orange Salad (from chef at Claridge’s London)