ABSTRACT
Normally if someone wishes to exploit copyright material beyond the limitations of statute law, they need to get permission by approaching the copyright owner directly. For librarians and information professionals who are regularly making use of a wide range of copyright materials from literally hundreds of different publishers it would be totally impractical for them to have constantly to make contact with the rights owners. What we really need is a truly ‘one-stop shop’. Until such time as a body is set up to license companies and organisations for all their copying, the clearance of in-house photocopying remains a tiresome and, in some cases, impracticable operation. To save the need for individual permissions, rights owners have formed a number of collective licensing schemes. These organisations act collectively for groups of copyright owners in respect of particular rights, and they may offer ‘blanket’ licences to users, although the term ‘blanket’ is somewhat misleading, as the terms of the licence would be very strictly defined.
