02-10-2009, 09:54 PM | #1 |
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New Kindle Audio Feature Causes a Stir
Article in WSJ - have no idea if it's under the pay wall since I have a subscribtion.
Love this quote: "Some publishers and agents expressed concern over a new, experimental feature that reads text aloud with a computer-generated voice. "They don't have the right to read a book out loud," said Paul Aiken, executive director of the Authors Guild. "That's an audio right, which is derivative under copyright law." " The stupidity of some people just does not have bounds. It would be lovely for publishers/author guild to sue Amazon, no better publicity for the Kindle |
02-10-2009, 09:59 PM | #2 |
Grand Sorcerer
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Ruh roh!
Wow, that's weird. |
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02-10-2009, 10:02 PM | #3 |
Groupie
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So are we also not allowed to read books aloud to our kids? It's not like they store an audio version of the book on there. The computer is just reading it on the fly.
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02-10-2009, 10:13 PM | #4 |
reader
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If an ebook is DRM free then in the US (the only place where the Kindle is sold) read-aloud is a protected "fair use" format shift of the material. I don't see how DRM can come into play, since Amazon is certainly allowed to circumvent its own DRM. Publishers may be able to argue that their contract with Amazon does not allow read aloud, but presumably Amazon's lawyers have an alternative theory. In any case, publishers may be cutting their own throats - because if all ebook versions prohibit read-aloud then the Library of Congress allows anyone to circumvent DRM for personal use (see DMCA Anti-circumvention exemptions).
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02-10-2009, 10:14 PM | #5 |
Gadget Geek
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There have been programs that did this on people's computers for years. People with sever visual impairment rely on them. Are they going to start suing them, too?
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02-10-2009, 10:18 PM | #6 | |
Manic Do Fuse
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I have noticed that many of the Microsoft LIT books I have purchased have the text to speech option disabled. According to Microsoft this is why:
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02-10-2009, 10:38 PM | #7 | |
Jeffrey A. Carver
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Quote:
I'm a member of the Authors Guild, and I was a little horrified to hear him make this claim--because to my mind, having a Kindle or computer read a file aloud is no different in copyright terms from my reading a book aloud to my family. And yet, I understand why he made the statement. Authors do indeed license audio rights to their books separately from other rights. They might or might not go to the text publisher for subsidiary sale. But to me, that's a different thing, because there you're talking about a professionally produced audio reading of the work--presumably by a professional reader who will give the reading inflection and expression. Now, it may well be that some people who like audio books will forego buying audiobooks if their Kindle will read text aloud in a computer voice. (Given that Amazon owns Audible, I imagine there were some in-house discussions about this.) So I don't agree with Mr. Aiken, but it is an arguable point. Re the Microsoft LIT files with read-aloud disabled, I've been frustrated by that in terms of my own books at fictionwise, because I think people should have that option when they buy my ebooks. Just today, I put the question to the production head at ereads: With the Kindle offering read-aloud, does that mean we can get rid of the prohibition on my ereads titles? He answered that it is fictionwise that requires the disabling of read-aloud, and ereads can't do anything unless fictionwise changes their policy. I wonder, in view of this statement from the Authors Guild, if the reason for the fictionwise policy isn't that they don't want publishers after them about unlicensed audio rights. Finally, someone mentioned Amazon owning the DRM on the books they sell. That is incorrect. (I also got clarification about that today.) The DRM is on the supplied files from the publisher, and it's there because Mobipocket.com requires it. What I am told is that Amazon draws most of their inventory from Mobipocket.com, which they own. So Amazon doesn't apply the DRM, and they might not directly require it, but it is required by the gatekeeper, Mobipocket. I can't swear this applies to all publishers, but that's what ereads is facing, and that's why ereads titles on Amazon have DRM. Last edited by starrigger; 02-11-2009 at 01:37 AM. |
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02-10-2009, 10:45 PM | #8 |
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As reported on various blogs - I do not have an Amazon link for this quote so I do not guarantee 100% accuracy, the Amazon position seems to be:
"The ability to read text aloud is very different from producing an audio version of a written work, so audio distribution rights are not required for any titles currently available as eBooks in the Kindle store." link for quote: http://lcrw.net/wordpress/?p=845 |
02-10-2009, 10:58 PM | #9 | |
Wizard
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02-10-2009, 11:01 PM | #10 | |||
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Cory Doctorow rails against DRM at Tools of Change conference
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The full article can be found at http://www.teleread.org/2009/02/10/c...ce/#more-16765. |
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02-10-2009, 11:06 PM | #11 | |
Wizard
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Quote:
Last edited by bwaldron; 02-10-2009 at 11:11 PM. |
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02-10-2009, 11:07 PM | #12 |
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This could get juicy...be something if Amazon had to issue a firmware update and disable the text to speech
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02-10-2009, 11:13 PM | #13 |
reader
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02-10-2009, 11:29 PM | #14 | |
Jeffrey A. Carver
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Quote:
Sorry, I may have been unclear. I meant mobipocket.com when I said mobipocket earlier. |
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02-10-2009, 11:30 PM | #15 |
Wizard
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I guess that I better stop moving my lips when I read. There are people out there that can lip read.
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