Quote:
Originally Posted by Elfwreck
"Distribution" of copyrighted works is covered under copyright law. Normally, the first sale doctrine exhausts the copyright owner's rights, and the buyer can distribute/lend/resell at will--but a recent case before the US Supreme Court is challenging that right.
The 9th Circuit ruled that the first-sale doctrine applied only to items legally made in the United States. Which means that books published in other countries may not be legal to lend or resell, even if purchased legally in their country of origin.
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I haven't researched it, but "lending" in the physical context does not strike me as equating to "distribution," at least, in the absence of an element of profit. But even if that were not to prove to be the case, it appears to me that lending by a public library would be permitted by the governmental aspect of fair use.
I strongly doubt that any public library could be constrained from lending a legally acquired book. The historical record combined with the public policy aspects seem to me to make that pretty near a certainty.
I believe that ninth circuit case is the one about the watch logo? That occurred in a commercial context. It will not be extended to libraries.