Re: [Wikimediauk-l] Public Domain Day - Wikimedia UK press release

Hi Juan, Thanks for getting in touch. We've been talking about whether we should put out another press release this year, however last year we discovered that things aren't quite as simple as we hoped with public domain day and Wikimedia. The servers for Wikimedia sites are based in the US, which means that US copyright also has to be followed - and thanks to the US joining the Berne Convention in 1989, works later than 1923 that weren't in the public domain pre-1996 are still copyright protected regardless of whether they enter the public domain this year (unless they were never published in the US, I believe). If only copyright laws were simpler. :-( So: I'm not sure whether we'll be putting out a release or not yet. I've cc'd the Wikimedia UK mailing list, as well as Gemma (our Head of Public Relations), to see what they think. You might also be interested in the discussion on Wikisource - Wikimedia's repository and proof-reading project for out-of-copyright books - on this topic, which you can find at http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Wikisource:Scriptorium#Public_Domain_Day_2011 Thanks, Mike Peel Wikimedia UK On 26 Dec 2010, at 21:07, J.C. DE MARTIN wrote: Day? put out today on Public Domain Day, at: http://blog.wikimedia.org.uk/2009/12/wikipedia-celebrates-public-domain-day… >> Thanks, >> Mike Peel >> Chair, Wikimedia UK - http://uk.wikimedia.org/ >> Tel: +44 (0)7988 013 646 >> Email: michael.peel(a)wikimedia.org.uk >> Wikimedia UK is a local chapter of the Wikimedia Foundation (who operate Wikipedia, amongst other projects). It has no legal control over Wikipedia, nor responsibility for its contents. >> Wikimedia UK is the operating name of Wiki UK Limited. >> Wiki UK Ltd is a Company Limited by Guarantee registered in England and Wales, Registered No. 6741827. United Kingdom.