Author: Admin

Just in time for Copyright Week, we’re celebrating a huge win for the open access movement. Today, Congress passed the 2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill. For the most part, it focuses on government spending and budget cuts we’ve seen covered in the news. But the bill also contains important language (PDF) promoting public access to federally funded research, making sure that taxpayers get a real return their investment. Specifically, the bill requires federal agencies under the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education with research budgets of $100 million or more to provide the public with online access to…

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The US Senate Committee on Finance held a hearing this morning on the new “fast track” bill that was introduced last week. The bill, formally called the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities Act of 2014 or TPA 2014 for short, would have Congress “fast track,” or hand over its power over US trade policy, to the White House. In practice, this means elected representatives would have even less oversight, control, and authority over secretive agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). It also means that powerful moneyed lobbyists, like Hollywood Studios, could more easily…

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In the week leading up the two-year anniversary of the SOPA blackout protests, EFF and others are talking about key principles that should guide copyright policy. Every day, we’ll take on a different piece, exploring what’s at stake and and what we need to do to make sure the law promotes creativity and innovation. We’ve put together a page where you can read and endorse the principles yourself. Let’s send a message to DC, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, Brussels, and wherever else folks are making new copyright rules: We’re from the Internet, and we’re here to help. You bought it, you…

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