Six universities sued for copyright infringement

A local association that helps enforce copyright laws said Wednesday it has filed a lawsuit against six universities in the country for not paying the fee required by law to use copyrighted materials in class.

Under the lawsuit filed between July and August of this year, six universities, including Seoul National University, Hanyang University and Sungkyunkwan University, are accused of not compensating copyright holders for using their works in the school curriculum, according to the Korea Reprographic and Transmission Rights Association (KRTRA).

The current law, which was introduced in 2010, stipulates that universities should pay a fixed fee in order to use copyrighted materials for teaching purposes without having to seek prior consent each time students or professors use or make copies of them.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has so far arranged for local bodies in charge of collecting royalties, including the KRTRA, to levy an annual 1,879 won ($1.73) to 3,132 won per student using the copyrighted materials. which include books, audio files and videos. The KRTRA says it has yet to receive any payments from the six universities in question.

"We have filed the suit as the universities did not comply with our numerous calls to abide by the law and compensate the copyright owners," a KRTRA official said.

"In comparison with the situation at other schools, (we felt that) a more urgent resolution was needed for the copyright infringements at these six universities."

Universities in the country, meanwhile, say the compensation fee is set too high and express unease about the copyright law.

"A majority of the cases where copyrighted materials are used in universities are for academic purposes," a university official said.

"If we are restricted from making any copies (to hand out to students in class) because of the current law, it will be a loss to the student who will then have to seek out necessary class materials on their own." (Yonhap)