Hello to all,

Initially, thank you Dimi for this. It is really important to know about such actions, even though they might not be taken into account. They might also be, so I believe that this survey should not be neglected, since there are issues.

I never had an experience with the Orphan Works Database, so I don't think that I can reply in a very honest way to the survey. Do you think that there could be a guideline on how the survey could be completed?

For instance, in the question "Do you have experience in using the Database" my answer is "No" but in the comment section I could write two lines about why I am interested in the survey. Or in the question "Please indicate if you have any suggestions for the improvements of the Orphan Works Database" people who have had experience using the database could offer their feedback and people filling up the survey would be more aware about what they could respond.

If this sounds like an interesting idea, let's discuss it!

All the best to all,
Aimilia

On 19/06/2017 12:26, Dimitar Parvanov Dimitrov wrote:

Hi all,

The EU IPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) is the agency that is responsible for operating an Orphan Works Database, as laid out in the Orphan Works Directive.

Neither the Orphan Works Directive nor the OW Database have helped orphan works being digitised and used, which was the original intention. Wikimedia projects are a priori excluded from the scope and can't use the established exception. Only cultural heritage institutions are allowed to benefit and only after a diligent search (which no one really knows what it means). The database itself is less than usable. Launched in 2014, it now holds only around 5000 entries. The entries simply mention that a work is an orphan, but don't link back to the work or offer preview.

Now, the EU IPO is doing a survey on the database and the orphan works framework. Nothing of great importance, as the IPO can't propose changes to legislation and DG CNCT doesn't really listen to them anyway, but the survey is also opened to individuals. If you feel like having some fun:

https://www.tmdn.org/uss/466892/lang-en

Cheers,

Dimi

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