FW: Info on 2B

["John W. Sliger" <jsliger -at- PDQ -dot- NET>]

I believe this is appropriate for the list.
John W. Sliger
Technical Writer
Phone: (281) 353-0567
E-mail: jsliger -at- pdq -dot- net


-----Original Message-----
From:   Adele or David Mooney [SMTP:amoonpie -at- tiger -dot- chipshot -dot- net]
Sent:   Monday, July 06, 1998 5:34 AM
To:     'scribe-list -at- bellicose -dot- com'
Subject:        FW: Info on 2B

Seems like info we should act upon...
AM

----------
From:   Peter Saint James[SMTP:peterstj -at- IX -dot- NETCOM -dot- COM]
Sent:   Sunday, July 05, 1998 10:48 PM
To:     CARR-L -at- ULKYVM -dot- LOUISVILLE -dot- EDU
Subject:        Info on 2B

The following came up on another list that I'm on.  It's from the National Writers Union and concerns UCC2B, which holds some dire consequences for writers-especially freelancers.  It's about the most clear info on the subject I've found and gives some info about what to do if you don't like what you read about it.

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In the next few weeks, we must act quickly to protest a matter of some urgency. For the past two years, the NWU has been tracking the development of the Uniform Commercial Code Article 2B (most recently, we appeared before the UCC2B drafting committee). While this is a somewhat arcane legal subject, it touches on the lives of *every* content creator.
What is Article 2B? It began as an effort to address software licensing, covering the range of contracts from mass market to commercial transaction frameworks. But, like the Kenneth Starr investigation, Article 2B has gone far beyond its original intent. It now will govern every aspect of information use from the purchase of your next word processing program, to research on your next assignment, to the copyright you hold in the work you create.
The attached fact sheet outlines 2B and its problems for writers (feel free to distribute or borrow from it-with proper credit). Additional material on 2B can be found on the union's website.
Why the urgency? The Drafting Committee is making a significant push to bring the process to a close and push through its current version (or  is ostensibly open to the public, the reality is that the current version of 2B was cut to suit factions of the information industry, represented by lobbyists from major computer, software, communications, publishing and other media companies.
2B is slated for consideration by NCCUSL in July 1998, by the ALI Council in October 1998, and by the combined drafting committee in November 1998. The necessary final approval by NCCUSL and ALI memberships will not be sought until 1999; if approved, NCCUSL will most likely present 2B to state legislatures in September of 1999. However, the drafting committee will make the crucial decisions about the scope and content of the statute between July and November of this year.
What, us, worry?
Why should writers be concerned with the ponderous drafting machinery of a commercial statute?
The current version of 2B governs every aspect of information use from the purchase of your next word processing program, to research on your next assignment, to the copyright you hold in the work you create-yet it was drafted without regard to guidance from creator or consumer groups. Once states begin enacting licensing statutes incorporating 2B's provisions, by default writers can be locked into terms we haven't even had the opportunity to negotiate. The 2B machine, with its industry bias, will have done our bargaining for us.
What will be done & to whom?
2B's tentacles will snare journalists, book writers, scriptwriters, BITE (Business Instructional Technical and Educational) writers, all of us in our capacity as researchers and yes, you, gentle reader.
2B will strangle how we do business and negotiate the rights to our work by:
* Replacing a "reasonable editor" standard for acceptance with a subjective satisfaction standard, sanctioning the rejection of manuscripts at editorial whim and without payment for the writer's time-not even a kill fee.
* Trumping first sale rights by permitting publishers of a collection, such as a newspaper, to license and sell the collected work to another publisher even if those secondary rights were retained by the writer.
* Holding publishers to a minimum contractual standard of subjective "good faith" in promoting a writer's work, making it impossible to challenge their failure to do so.
* Endorsing all rights contracts and undermining existing copyright law by fostering the acquisition and exploitation of as yet unknown and undeveloped future rights.
* Making technical and corporate writers accountable for the accuracy and fitness of information supplied by the client for incorporation into the work.
* Gutting fair use doctrines and library copying privileges by blessing online "shrink-wrap" and "click-wrap" licenses for software and other information products and services, which allow publishers to impose conditions of use before consumers can access the information
* Choking free expression by permitting shrink-wrap and click-wrap licenses to impose prior restraints on readers' and writers' freedom to criticize or discuss the informational content.

What's my union doing about 2B?
* We formally proposed written changes to make 2B a more writer-friendly law, helping to brake its headlong rush to the statute books, and alerting creative professionals to its pernicious impact.
* We're coalition building with allied author and consumer advocates to increase the heat on NCCUSL.
* We're monitoring the 2B drafting process with a NWU attorney-representative.
What actions can I take to help wrest back our rights?
* Use your pen. Many writers won't know about this stealth legislation until it hits them where they live. Let your colleagues and readers know about 2B by writing articles about it. More information can be found at NWU's website at <http://www.nwu.org/nwu/> and you can contact NWU President Jonathan Tasini at (212) 254-0279.
* Write letters of protest to NCCUSL and your state legislators. For ease of drafting we've posted a sample letter outlining the key issues, and relevant contact information, on the NWU website.
* Spread the word. Talk to colleagues about 2B in other guilds and organizations, and at the workplace. Bring it up at conferences. Make copies of this Fact Sheet. Pass 'em on.
Remember, your words are your livelihood. If our work wasn't considered a viable profit source, corporate America wouldn't be bellying up for the rights to exploit it. Know your worth and fight for it!

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National Writers Union              National Writers Union
National Office West                        National Office East
337 - 17th Street, Suite 101                113 University Place, 6th Floor
Oakland, CA 94612                           New York, NY 10003
Phone: (510) 839-0110               Phone: (212) 254-0279
Fax: (510) 839-6097                 Fax: (212) 254-0673
email: <nwu -at- nwu -dot- org>                email: <nwu -at- nwu -dot- org>

UAW LOCAL 1981 / AFL-CIO
WEBSITE: <http://www.nwu.org/nwu/>
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