After considerable helpful discussion with members of its Copyright
Committee and others, ALPSP (the Association of Learned and
Professional Society Publishers) has come up with a model 'Grant of
Licence' form for journal articles, for use in cases where the
publisher do not feel they have to acquire copyright, but nevertheless
want to secure their rights as far as is reasonable. I attach a copy
(also pasted below for those who can't manage my attachments!).
We believe that this may be a step forward in establishing the most
author-friendly possible policies (the need for which was clearly
highlighted by our research study, What Authors Want) and we hope that
others will feel free to use it as a source document for their own
journals (the bits in square brackets are intended to be optional; in
particular, it is unclear whether or not Moral Rights apply in the UK,
but the lawyers among us have suggested that it may be safer to include
it explicitly). We shall be adopting it for ALPSP's own journal,
Learned Publishing.
I should also be very interested in any comments on the document.
Please do also feel free to let others know about it, point to it on
our website (www.alpsp.org.uk) or whatever!
Sally Morris, Secretary-General
Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers
South House, The Street, Clapham, Worthing, West Sussex BN13 3UU, UK
Phone: 01903 871686 Fax: 01903 871457 E-mail: sec-gen_at_alpsp.org.uk
ALPSP Website
http://www.alpsp.org.uk
Licence to Publish
In order to publish your article we need your agreement in writing.
Please take a moment to read the terms of this licence, sign the form
and return it to us as quickly as possible.
Name of Journal
Title of Article
Name(s) of Author(s)
Name of Copyright Owner, if not author(s)
Address of above (if applicable)
By signing this form, you (the author(s) or other copyright owner)
agree to grant to us (the publisher) the exclusive right both to
reproduce and/or distribute your article (including the abstract)
ourselves throughout the world in printed, electronic or any other
medium, and in turn to authorise others (including Reproduction Rights
Organisations such as the Copyright Licensing Agency and the Copyright
Clearance Center) to do the same. You agree that we may publish your
article in the journal named above, and that we may sell or distribute
it within the journal, on its own, or with other related material.
You promise that the article is your original work, has not
previously been published, and is not currently under consideration
by another journal. If it contains material which is someone else's
copyright, you promise that you have obtained the unrestricted
permission of the copyright owner (please attach evidence of this) and
that the material is clearly identified and acknowledged within the
text. You also promise that the article does not, to the best of your
knowledge, contain anything which is libellous, illegal, or infringes
anyone's copyright or other rights.
[You assert your Moral Right to be identified as the author, and w]We
promise that we will respect your rights as the author(s). That is, we
will make sure that your name(s) is/are always clearly associated with
the article and, while you do allow us to make necessary editorial
changes, we will not make any substantial alteration to your article
without consulting you. [We will have your article fairly reviewed by
[at least two] impartial referees, and will let you know the outcome as
quickly as possible.] When the article is accepted, we undertake to
publish it as soon as we reasonably can. If it is rejected, this
agreement is automatically cancelled and all the rights come back to
you. On publication, we will send you [.. free offprints][a free copy].
We will do everything we reasonably can to maximise the visibility of
the journal, and of your article within it.
Copyright remains yours, and we will acknowledge this in the
copyright line which appears on your article. However, you authorise us
to act on your behalf to defend your copyright if anyone should
infringe it, and to retain half of any damages awarded, after deducting
our costs. You also retain the right to use your own article (provided
you acknowledge the published original in standard bibliographic
citation form) as follows, as long as you do not sell it [or give it
away] in ways which would conflict directly with our commercial
business interests: for the internal educational or other purposes of
your own institution or company; mounted on your own or your
institution's website; [posted to free public servers of preprints
and/or articles in your subject area]; in whole or in part, as the
basis for your own further publications or spoken presentations.
Signature(s) of Author(s)
Note: every named author must sign this form, or a copy of it
Signature of Copyright Owner, if different
Please return this form by post or fax to [address details]
Received on Wed Feb 10 1999 - 19:17:43 GMT