Managing Intellectual Property in the Book Publishing Industry (DL-401)

For any enterprise in the business of creating or using the products of the mind, a poorly-managed intellectual property portfolio can be detrimental to the success of its business. For this reason it is essential for publishers to protect their company’s intellectual property assets, as they will in turn work for them and be their most vital and valuable asset in the business of publishing books. The WIPO course on Managing Intellectual Property in the Book Publishing Industry is a business-oriented course focusing on the role of book publishers as creators, acquirers, custodians and mangers – owners and users- of intellectual property rights.

Course outline: This course is intended to provide a basic guide to publishers who wish to increase their understanding of how to manage intellectual property (IP) rights in a business context. Based on conventional practices of publishing houses, it offers practical information to help publishers both to exploit IP rights as economic assets and to avoid infringing the rights of others. It focuses primarily on publishers of trade books. The concepts covered are equally relevant to publishers of other printed literature, such as textbooks, newspapers, magazines and corporate literature.

It is important to note that the complex issues relating to digital and electronic publishing lies outside the scope of this course. The learning objects and legal statements in the course have a universal value and are not substitute for national copyright legislation nor should they be used as a substitute for professional advice on specific legal issues.

The course consists of the following sections:

Module A: Unit A1 - Negotiating with authors: copyright ownership
Module A: Unit A2 - Moral rights and ethical responsibilities
Module A: Unit A3 - Publisher-author contracts
Module A: Unit A4 - Negotiating with authors: financial agreements
Module A: Unit A5 - Working with other content suppliers
Module A: Unit A6 - Terminating the agreement

Module B: Unit B1 - Negotiating publishing partnerships
Module B: Unit B2 - Benefiting from subsidiary rights – buying, selling and licensing
Module B: Unit B3 - Book fairs
Module B: Unit B4 - Managing copyright assets
Module B: Unit B5 - Managing online copyright and licensing
Module B: Unit B6 - Copyright infringement
 

Additionally, it provides for brief illustrations of several cases to describe and help the learner achieve the learning objectives.

Target Audience: The level of the course is best described as intermediate in intellectual property studies and it is firmly targeted at people who wish to know about the IP and publishing. It would therefore be useful for people generating, or professionals responsible for protecting various forms of, intellectual property, in the publishing industry. It is strongly recommended that those who register for the course already posses knowledge of intellectual property or have taken the General Course on IP (DL-101), or Copyright and Related Rights (DL-201), or Electronic Commerce and Intellectual Property (DL-202).

Timeframe and How to Study: It is estimated that the average length of time you will take to study the course will be around 80 hours. We recommend that you study the modules in the sequence in which they are presented. For instance, you should learn about the objectives at the start of each module before reading the text and measure your understanding through the various semi-formal questions that are provided for. The revision modules are put forward to summarize the succinct learning objects prior to your testing your knowledge. Having prior knowledge about IP would allow you to get more value out of this course through discussions with your tutors and other learners.

There is no set schedule for this course other than the required steady progress to meet the 80 hours of study time allowing enough time for asking questions and preparing for the final exam.

Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs): To help you test your progress you will find that the quizzes and questions in the course have been designed as self-assessment. You should attempt to do these before you look at the model answer which is also provided in the course. Self assessment methods are used for your personal measure of learning, since your answers are only seen by yourself and not your tutor.

Resource Materials: We have tried to make the materials as clear as possible but it is inevitable that you will find some parts harder to understand than others. You may need extra help and this is where the support of a tutor will aid your study. Your contact with your tutor is made easier by simply clicking on ‘My Tutor’ taskbar on the left side of your on line student file.

The course content is available on line as well as on PDF. Most distance learning students prefer to print or down load the PDF for their off line use.

Final Exam: The final exam is a list of questions to which you are required to write essay-type responses and save in Word (95 and above). You are required to send your answers as an e-mail attachment to your tutor who will mark it and post the result in your electronic student file. The passing grade to qualify for the WIPO Certificate is 50% or higher on the final exam. Once you have read all of the modules and pass the final exam, you will be eligible for a WIPO certificate stating that you have successfully completed the course. (Please see below more details about the final exam). The Academy does not have re-sitting or extension policy for its final exams. If students are not able to sit for the final exam after the last week of the course, the students would have to register again.

Tutor: At the end of the course orientation period, you will be assigned a tutor whose job will be to help you with your study of this course. You will find your tutor’s contact details and biography in your student file. You will also receive an e-mail from your tutor introducing him or herself and welcoming you to the course. You may also contact your tutor by clicking on the ‘Tutor’ button on the taskbar on the left side of the screen once you are in the modules. You may pose substantive questions related to the course, for example, explanations on parts you find confusing or help in interpreting in your local context. The tutorial support will end in the last week of the course before the final exam.

Certificate: Successful candidates will receive a WIPO certificate attesting to their successful completion only if the student has provided a correct and fixed address. Due to the universal appeal to the WIPO courses, certificates are sent by registered mail and must be picked up from the local post office. Certificates are sent 6 to 8 weeks after the completion of the grading of the final exam. 

Fees: List of applicable fees for 2011

 

Course Schedule 2011 (subject to change):

Technical requirements

• A computer connected to the Internet
• Internet Explorer 5 or higher
• Sound card and speakers
• Real Player software
• Adobe Acrobat Reader