New E-reserves question

[claudia holland <chollan3@xxxxxxx>]

I'm going to spin off on this topic a bit and ask readers about their 
experiences with receiving publisher permission to reuse an entire book, 
whether paying or communicating through the CCC, in this case, or 
contacting a publisher directly.

A professor at my institution wanted to use an out-of-print, 
in-copyright title for her class of 30 students. The entire book (223 
pp.) is a required reading in her course; there are no comparable 
substitutions. Although there are a few used copies available via 
Amazon, alibris, etc., the professor wants to use this book in 
subsequent classes because of its unique content. Future purchase of the 
title may become problematic for students.

We initially thought the most logical approach to making this book 
available to the class was to post it in e-reserves. We contacted the 
CCC, which manages the fees, etc. for HarperCollins International 
Division, UK, the rights holder.

If we were allowed to digitize and post the entire book in e-reserves, 
the fee the CCC would charge is about $1676 (based on # of pages, cost 
/page & # of students in the course). Likewise, the fee for a print 
version of the entire book would cost each student about $75 at our 
institution (royalty fee + copy paper + bookstore mark-up (33%)). 
Because we needed the entire book, however, the CCC had to forward our 
request directly to the publisher. Permission to reuse was subsequently 
denied by HarperCollins. No reason given.

I do not understand why the publisher would deny this use. Given the 
librarys copyright fund limitations, there is no way we can or will pay 
$1676 in royalties for access to one title for a single class. The 
professor does not want the students to pay $75 for a small paperback 
book that currently costs no more than about $25 on the high end of the 
used scale.

Some may argue fair use, given the lack of a license to use the book and 
the limited availability of copies. I am frustrated that now there may 
be no recourse for this professor who merely wants to enrich her 
students' learning by using this unique book.

Claudia Holland

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