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Herman Spruijt, President of the International Publishers Association, believes that the IPA Copyright Symposium, which takes place in Abu Dhabi in March, offers great opportunities for both East and West  For the first time this year, the IPA Copyright Symposium will take place in the Arab world, at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair in March, hosted by KITAB. It is a sign of the genuine moves within the Arab publishing industry towards greater integration with the international book market, and it will provide a fitting opportunity for representatives from across publishing, from both the Arab world and beyond, to discuss the issues and challenges facing our industry globally. Particularly pertinent this year will be the issues of digitisation and e-publishing.
The Arab book market offers real potential to the western publishing industry but, at the same time, it presents many challenges. Principal amongst challenges in the past has been a lack of adherence to international copyright conventions by many of the countries within the region, coupled with a fractured market and a high incidence of piracy. The incredibly diverse Arab market requires a balance of cultural sensitivity and a push for education and progress.
Countries such as the UAE are leading the way within the region by setting a benchmark in standards through a strong legislation and education programme. A firm legal groundwork was laid in the UAE in 2002 with the revision of the country’s Copyright and Related Rights Law. In a region that has traditionally suffered from a lack of confidence in the book industry – both domestically and internationally - due to high rates of piracy, measures such as this make a firm legal framework for the advancement of the industry into international markets.
In addition, regional organisations, such as the Emirates Publishers Association, have also been integral to progress in this area. EPA will soon join IPA as an Affiliate Member as a result of its commitment to the international principles the IPA upholds. Working to those principles whilst using its knowledge of local culture and custom, the organisation is perfectly placed to communicate with local publishers and aid their development within the international marketplace. This, coupled with the efforts of the pan-Arab organisation the Arabian Anti-Piracy Alliance (with its wide-ranging enforcement measures), sends a clear message to those in the region that illegal dissemination of pirated material is no longer acceptable.
Whilst there is a push for regional publishers to evolve and step up to the mark on issues of piracy and copyright, it is equally essential that these local initiatives are supported by the international publishing community. Some foreign publishers have recently set up regional operations in the Middle East, an example of the increasing confidence in the region not only as a target market but also a source of material. The expertise and capital international publishing houses can offer will aid the creation of distribution networks and expertise; it is in their interest to invest in and support professionalisation in this area. Their very presence in the region brings with it an increased confidence.
Nevertheless, the region benefits from the skills and sensibilities of local publishers, who have the best understanding of local culture. They provide a voice for local authors and reflect the cultural reality of local life, regional history and shared knowledge. Last year I was able to visit two book fairs in the Emirates: Abu Dhabi (an example of a fruitful partnership between an Abu Dhabi organisation - ADACH - and the Frankfurt Book Fair) and the Sharjah International Book Fair. The publishers in the Emirates, together with their governments, are working hard to encourage cross-cultural dialogue between Arabic and international publishers, recognising Arab publishers’ local expertise whilst providing them with the tools with which to compete internationally. To this end, the IPA has worked with KITAB over the last two years, hosting copyright sessions to educate and involve local publishers ahead of the symposium in 2010. Global rights are now the norm in markets that have become truly global themselves, such as large parts of academic publishing. In local distribution channels, marketing and PR matter, areas where the differences matter, territorial rights will continue to make business sense. Technology will ultimately help solve the problems it has created. We should not forget that the digital world is not static but continues to change. Even the Google Settlement is, in essence, an agreement full of geographical restrictions.
This is a time of great change in the publishing industry. The legal questions over rights and the how best to ensure fair and just payment for works is inevitable as new players and emerging technologies appear. Yet, in the longer term, it is these new channels and technologies that will create better opportunities for us deliver books to readers. Publishing, copyright and publishing business models have always been closely linked to technology. Copyright enabled the distinction between printers and publishers. Improvements in print technology created mass publishing markets. Improved communications enabled direct marketing and book clubs. It is natural therefore that new technologies will create further new markets. Similarly copyright will evolve.
Copyright is there to stimulate and protect private investments. Copyright is actually needed more than ever on the Internet, in business models that charge consumers, and to support those that offer content to users for free. Copyright is a success story, but it is not an ideology or a religion – rather, it is a practical tool. If we find other legal instruments to support the creators and their commercial partners, then publishers and society should embrace them.
Dr Herman P Spruijt began his career at Kluwer Publishing Company in 1974, where he held a variety of positions in printing and publishing divisions. Between 1981 and 1987, he was on the board of the newspaper group Perscombinatie. In 1987, he joined Elsevier as Managing Director of the Physical Sciences and Engineering Division; he currently acts as Chairman of De Monchyand Royal BDU and is a board member of Royal Brill and the newspaper Financieele Dagblad in The Netherlands. He was elected President of the International Publishers Association (IPA) from 1 January 2009.
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