[Senate Treaty Document 114-6]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
114th Congress } { Treaty Doc.
SENATE
2d Session } { 114-6
_______________________________________________________________________
MARRAKESH TREATY TO FACILITATE ACCESS TO PUBLISHED WORKS FOR PERSONS
WHO ARE BLIND, VISUALLY IMPAIRED, OR OTHERWISE PRINT DISABLED
__________
MESSAGE
from
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
transmitting
THE MARRAKESH TREATY TO FACILITATE ACCESS TO PUBLISHED WORKS FOR
PERSONS WHO ARE BLIND, VISUALLY IMPAIRED, OR OTHERWISE PRINT DISABLED,
DONE AT MARRAKESH ON JUNE 27, 2013 (MARRAKESH TREATY)
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February 10, 2016.--Treaty was read the first time, and together with
the accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
and ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate
______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
59-118 WASHINGTON : 2016
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
----------
The White House, February 10, 2016.
To the Senate of the United States:
With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the
Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith the Marrakesh
Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who
Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled, done
at Marrakesh on June 27, 2013 (Marrakesh Treaty). I also
transmit, for the information of the Senate, a report of the
Secretary of State with respect to the Marrakesh Treaty that
includes a summary of its provisions.
This copyright treaty, concluded under the auspices of the
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), advances the
national interest of the United States in promoting the
protection and enjoyment of creative works. The Marrakesh
Treaty lays a foundation, in a manner consistent with existing
international copyright standards, for further opening up a
world of knowledge for persons with print disabilities by
improving their access to published works.
The United States played a leadership role in the
negotiation of the treaty, and its provisions are broadly
consistent with the approach and structure of existing U.S.
law. Narrow changes in U.S. law will be needed for the United
States to implement certain provisions of the treaty. Proposed
legislation is being submitted to both houses of the Congress
in conjunction with this transmittal.
I recommend that the Senate give early and favorable
consideration to the Marrakesh Treaty, and give its advice and
consent to its ratification.
Barack Obama.
LETTER OF SUBMITTAL
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Department of State,
Washington, January 22, 2016.
The President,
The White House.
The President: I have the honor to submit to you, with a
view to its transmittal to the Senate for advice and consent to
ratification, the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to
Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired,
or Otherwise Print Disabled, done at Marrakesh June 27, 2013
(Marrakesh Treaty). The United States played a leadership role
in the development of the Treaty, which was negotiated under
the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO). Joining the Marrakesh Treaty will promote the
development of appropriate international rules in the realm of
intellectual property and make a positive tangible difference
in the lives of ordinary Americans and other individuals who
are visually impaired or have other print disabilities.
A brief summary of the treaty follows below. A detailed
overview of the treaty, with an article-by-article summary, is
enclosed.
The purpose of the Marrakesh Treaty is to reduce the global
shortage of print materials in special accessible formats for
the many millions of Americans and others throughout the world
who are blind, visually impaired or have other print
disabilities, such as physical limitations that prevent holding
a book. At present, according to WIPO, only a small percentage
of the more than one million books published worldwide every
year are available in Braille, large print, or accessible
digital files, resulting in diminished access to information,
culture and education for persons with print disabilities. The
Marrakesh Treaty addresses this gap by providing, with
appropriate safeguards, that copyright restrictions should not
impede the creation and distribution of such special format
copies, and by fostering the exchange of such copies
internationally.
Initiatives to combat what has been widely called the
``book famine'' affecting individuals with print disabilities
began to draw widespread international interest and support at
WIPO in the mid-2000s, spurred in particular by stakeholder
organizations and a group of Latin American countries. In
connection with the ongoing discussions, the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office organized public
forums and expert meetings on the subject, leading the United
States to develop and introduce its own proposal at WIPO in
2010. Additional proposals were offered by a group of African
countries and the European Union (EU). Working closely with
Brazil, Nigeria, the EU, and others, the United States helped
lead the negotiations to reconcile the differences in the
various proposals and ensure that the resulting treaty on
exceptions and limitations for the blind and visually impaired
would be consistent with the existing international copyright
framework. The Treaty was adopted at a diplomatic conference in
Marrakesh, Morocco, June 27, 2013.
The Marrakesh Treaty includes two core elements designed to
promote access to published works for persons with print
disabilities. First, it requires every Treaty party to provide
an exception or limitation in its national copyright law to
copyright holders' exclusive rights of reproduction,
distribution, and making available published works to the
public, in order to facilitate the availability of books and
other printed materials in accessible formats. Second, the
Treaty requires that parties allow ``authorized entities'' (for
example, libraries, or organizations devoted to assisting the
visually impaired) to distribute such ``accessible format
copies'' to other authorized entities and to ``beneficiary
persons'' (individuals who meet defined criteria for visual or
other reading-related impairments) in other countries that are
party to the Treaty.
These provisions to promote access for individuals with
print disabilities are paired with safeguards to assure the
interests of those holding copyright in the disseminated works.
The Treaty keeps the scope of the required exception or
limitation within the parameters set by existing international
copyright agreements; specifies areas regarding the handling
and distribution of accessible format copies in which
authorized entities in Treaty parties establish and follow
their own practices; limits distribution of accessible format
copies to within a party's territory in certain circumstances;
and emphasizes that such copies are for the exclusive use of
beneficiary persons.
The provisions of the Marrakesh Treaty are generally
compatible with existing U.S. law. Narrow statutory changes for
the United States to implement the Marrakesh Treaty are
described in the separate proposed legislation that the
Administration is submitting to the Senate and to the House of
Representatives in conjunction with this Treaty. The Marrakesh
Treaty is non-self-executing.
Since the enactment in 1996 of the Chafee Amendment to the
U.S. Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. Sec. 121, print-disabled
individuals' access to printed materials in the United States
has flourished. Incorporating this framework into the Marrakesh
Treaty helps foster cross-border exchange that can further
address the global ``book famine,'' without compromising
standards for intellectual property protection. If the United
States joins the Treaty, implementation by the United States
and other parties should result in more English and foreign-
language works becoming available to individuals with print
disabilities in the United States, and more U.S.-origin works
becoming available to such persons in other countries.
In view of the foregoing, I recommend that the Marrakesh
Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who
Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled be
transmitted to the Senate as soon as possible for its advice
and consent to ratification.
Respectfully submitted.
John F. Kerry.
Enclosures: As stated.
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