Clarification, please.

[desertgrandma]

Okay, so here is something I've been wondering for ages. If I own a paper copy of a book, is it legal to scan it for my own use?

For instance, can I legally take my copy of James Micheners "The Covenant", scan it and transfer to my Kindle? Assuming I would know how to do this?

Thanks!

[Greg Anos]

The law is conflicting on this, with no judicial resolution that I am aware of.

First, I'm not a lawyer, so this is only a layman's opinion. Hopefully, the pro's will chime in.

To make any copy of a copyrighted material is a copyright violation, unless it falls under the "fair use" doctrine. "Fair use" is not a written law, but the pile of various judicial ruling over time. I.E. case law.

On one side, there are laws blocking copying of materials, copyright law, and the Digital Copyright Millenial Act (DCMA), which blocks any copying of encrypted data.

On the other hand, you have various rulings about the legality of libraries, the selling of used books, archival backup of digital materials (I believe), and the Sony Betamax decision.

<Shrug.>

Nobody knows how a case (as you described it) would be resolved. It could be treated as straight copyright violation, or time shifting, or archival backup, or format shifting. Each one gives a different answer...

[wallcraft]

In the US, this would generally be considered a protected "fair use". From EFF: Fair Use FAQ:

Although the legal basis is not completely settled, many lawyers believe that the following (and many other uses) are also fair uses:

* Space-shifting or format-shifting - that is, taking content you own in one format and putting it into another format, for personal, non-commercial use. For instance, "ripping" an audio CD (that is, making an MP3-format version of an audio CD that you already own) is considered fair use by many lawyers, based on the 1984 Betamax decision and the 1999 Rio MP3 player decision (RIAA v. Diamond Multimedia, 180 F. 3d 1072, 1079, 9th Circ. 1999.)
* Making a personal back-up copy of content you own - for instance, burning a copy of an audio CD you own.

EFF is going to put the best case possible for fair use, but the above is probably accurate. Note that DMCA complicates fair use when DRM is involved, which it obviously isn't when scanning paper books.

[zelda_pinwheel]

from what little (very little) i know, Ralph Sir Edward is right ; copyright law is far too complex and the answer varies from country to country.

however many people feel that such cases *do* fall under "fair use" as long as you are doing the scanning for your own personal use and are not intending to sell or otherwise distribute it. it's considered comparable to ripping a cd you have bought to mp3 files so you can listen to it on your ipod. this is called "format shifting". it does often come down to "do what you think is ethically acceptable".

also, don't forget that while the legal status of this activity may be unclear in some countries (in some countries it is explicitly legal, i believe in canada for instance although i could be wrong), in order to be prosecuted for it even IF it were defined as definitely illegal, you would have to get caught. i'm not really sure how someone quietly scanning copies of their own legally-owned paper books for their own personal use, not uploading them anywhere, could ever possibly come to the attention of any legal entity.

personally, i happen to consider that a completely fair use of any media that i buy ; if i've bought it, i think i should be able to read it however i choose.

EDIT : i see wallcraft was faster than me and also better documented.

[desertgrandma]

Thanks, Sir Edward. And thanks, Wallcraft and Zelda. That makes it a little more clear. Still lots of muddy waters out there.

I"d say I'm on the side of "If I already own the paper copy, and want to convert it to my e-book reader for my own personal use, I'm okay with that."