The Library continued to play a role in shaping government information policy. A Fair Go policy statement and which aims to make the collections in national collecting organisations available in digital form. The emergence of new information technologies and the digitisation of information are profoundly affecting the dissemination of information and changing the patterns of publishing. The ability to reproduce and distribute material electronically is unprecedented, providing opportunities as well as uncertainty. Copyright, with its dual purpose of protecting the intellectual property of creators and promoting widespread access to useful information, remains relevant and appropriate for electronic information.
Libraries play an important role in promoting and providing access to knowledge and information.
Copyright legislation seeks to achieve a balance between the rights of creators and investors to receive remuneration for the use of their works and the needs of users to have reasonable access to those works. The Library is concerned that any reform of the copyright legislation succeed in maintaining that balance. In 1995-96 the Library prepared two submissions to the Copyright Law Review Committee. One put forward the view that intellectual property rights and protections are independent of the form of publication or distribution and urged that, in any revision of the copyright legislation, fair dealing should continue to exist, regardless of the medium. The other submission was prepared jointly with the National Film and Sound Archive.