Members will be aware that the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) is conducting a review of Australian copyright law in the context of the digital economy. The first stage of the Inquiry included release of an Issues Paper: Copyright and the Digital Economy (ALRC IP 42) to which CAMD responded in November 2012.

Roundtable in April

As part of the next step in this process, CAMD has been invited to attend a roundtable group of key cultural institutions in Sydney on 12 April to discuss ‘unlocking the archive’ and sharing views across the sector on topics relevant to the ALRC inquiry.  In coming weeks the CAMD Executive Officer will be seeking further input from museum members on this broad area.

Discussion Paper in May

Next steps after the roundtable and other stakeholder meetings will be the release of a Discussion Paper, with some preliminary options for reform, at the end of May.  At that time the ALRC will again call for submissions to build up the evidence base so far established and to inform the final stage of deliberations leading up to the final Report, which is to be provided to the Attorney-General by the end of November this year.