Monday, August 4, 2008

More About the Orphan Works Roundtable

A Reminder: You are invited to attend
THE ORPHAN WORKS ROUNDTABLE
CONDUCTED BY THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

How Will the Orphan Works Bill Economically Impact Small Entities?
Friday, August 8, 2008
10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon

Salmagundi Club
47 Fifth Avenue (between 11th & 12th Streets)
New York, NY 10003
212-255-7740
http://www.salmagundi.org
Free Admission

If you live in the New York area, please attend this critical event in person.
Congress established the SBA's Office of Advocacy to represent the views of people like us before Federal agencies and Congress. One of their goals is to ensure that our voices aren't lost within the lawmaking process. Your presence at this grassroots event will do much to see that our voices get heard.

Until now, Orphan Works legislation has been driven by anti-copyright forces and special interest groups. Their talking points have defined the issue. That's why, if you've written lawmakers, you may have received those talking points as a response.

We need to get our own views before lawmakers. We've had to go to Washington to make the case for artists. Now Washington is coming to us. We thank the SBA for agreeing to conduct this unprecedented field hearing and we thank the Salmagundi Club for offering us their space.

Don't miss this opportunity to show that our industry is united in opposing the Orphan Works bill.

• This bill would radically change copyright law.
• The change would create an entirely new business model for the licensing of copyrighted work.
• That business model would favor large corporate image banks at the expense of individual creators.
• This would harm artists, photographers, songwriters, musicians, writers.
• It would harm the small businesses that serve and are dependent on the creative community.

This is a side of the story Congressmen haven't heard so far. We need to make it part of an open, public debate.

The Roundtable will be chaired by Tom Sullivan, Director of the Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration. Nineteen distinguished panelists, all from the creative community, will represent the copyright interests of grassroots artists.

This event will be webcast.
PLEASE RSVP to illustratorspartnership@cnymail.com and include the names of those attending.

You may review the agenda, the panelists and their biographies on the IPA blog:
http://ipaorphanworks.blogspot.com/2008/08/80808-sba-hearing-on-orphan-works.html

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