Library associations are upset by a Library of Congress ruling this week that they claim destroys the "fair-use" principles that govern published materials. In issuing a ruling on the implementation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Library of Congress effectively left owners of copyrighted digital content in control of how that information is accessed. Library associations maintain that exceptions should be made to ensure that fair use extends into the digital age.

Lynne Bradley, director of government relations for the American Library Association, says librarians are concerned that the ruling will severely limit the public's ability to quote from digital materials, especially those that are not published in nondigital formats. "This is not just a complication, but a serious threat," Bradley says. "We're not looking to rip off whole documents, but there's got to be balance, and we feel that balance has been lost."

The ruling, which was based on a recommendation by the Register of Copyrights, will have the greatest effect on students, academics, and others performing scholarly research. It prevents those conducting such research from circumventing technological protection measures in seeking to refer to copyrighted material. Bradley suggests that there is a potential for litigation, or even calls that the entire act be reconsidered, in the aftermath of this week's ruling.

Library of Congress officials declined to comment on the ruling. But Librarian of Congress James Billington said in a prepared statement that he wanted to stress the importance of preserving the fair-use principle in the digital age. Billington also said in the statement that the ruling specifically addresses access, not use of the content itself: "Our primary responsibility was to assess whether current technologies that control access to copyrighted works are diminishing the ability of individuals to use works in a lawful, noninfringing way."