According to the law (§ 195CD (1) (c) (i)) publishers are required to register digital publications without technological protection measures (TPM) or digital rights management (DRM); This means that the copy must contain all content and features, without protections such as password protection or subscription paywalls. [19] Legal deposit is a legal obligation for South African publishers (or producers) of all types of documents, including audiovisual publications, to deposit a certain number of copies of each of their published documents at specific filing locations. It is international practice for governments to require producers of all types of published documents to deposit them. Countries around the world are currently reviewing and amending their legal deposit laws to reflect the growing importance of audiovisual and electronic media. In Germany, since 1913, publishers bound by a contract with the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels were obliged to send a so-called legal deposit copy of each book printed and available to the Deutsche Bücherei in Leipzig. After World War II, Deutsche Bücherei continued to operate in East Germany, while Deutsche Bibliothek was founded in Frankfurt am Main. Forced delivery continued to be strictly prescribed by private law, organised by the Börsenverein and German booksellers. Since 1969, the Deutsche Bibliothek Act of 31 March 1969, Federal Law Gazette I p. 265)[34] required that two copies of each printed publication and certain non-printed publications be sent to the German National Library in Frankfurt am Main or Leipzig (depending on the location of the publisher). The law was replaced by the German National Library Act in 2006, when the Deutsche Nationalbibilothek was founded. [35] In addition, each Land requires that one or two copies of works published in that State be deposited in the respective land register. [36] In Finland, the Royal Academy of Turku obtained the right to receive a copy of all works published in Sweden in 1707. After Finland was ceded by Sweden to Russia, this privilege was confirmed in 1809.
In 1820, all Russian printing presses began to send legally deposited copies to Finland. The preservation of documentary heritage facilitates access to all published documents produced in their country. Thus, legal deposit is one of the pillars of freedom of information. There are six legal deposit libraries under British law: the British Library, the National Library of Scotland, the National Library of Wales, the Bodleian Library of the University of Oxford, the Cambridge University Library and the Trinity College Dublin Library. [84] Although the Irish Free State left the United Kingdom in 1922, Trinity College remains a British depository library, and British libraries retain the depository rights of others for Irish publications. [49] [44] In Colombia, the right to deposit is governed by Law 44 of 1993, Legislative Decree 460 of March 16, 1999 and Decree 2150 of 1995. These laws and decrees refer specifically to the National Library of Colombia. Creators of print, audio-visual and video productions must make available to the Library a certain number of copies of the works, whether made in Colombian territory or imported. The current Law on Legal Deposit (Act No. 54 of 1997) was promulgated on 1 July 1998.
The Act provides for the deposit of books, magazines and other information containing materials such as films, videos, music CDs and DVDs published or produced in South Africa, as well as those produced abroad specifically for distribution in South Africa. The law provides a general legal framework for the number of copies to be deposited, their format and quality, the information required by publishers and producers at the time of filing copies, and measures against defaulting publishers and producers. Decree-Law No. 72/89/M requires that copies of works published in Macao be deposited in the Macao Central Library. [61] [62] In Spain, it is mandatory to deposit copies of printed matter, since 1619 for the Royal Library of El Escorial and since 1716 for the Royal Library of Madrid (later National Library of Spain). [72]:8 From that point on, several provisions followed, called “legal deposit” in the 19th century, all for the purpose of enforcing the law. The purpose of legal deposit is to collect, preserve and make available to current and future users documents containing the country`s intellectual and cultural heritage. In 2007, a new law on the deposit and preservation of cultural property was promulgated.
The new law covers two important new types of cultural material. The National Audiovisual Archives collects and preserves broadcasting material, while the National Library of Finland (renamed Helsinki University Library) collects and preserves web content. [33] In the United Kingdom, the purpose of legal deposit is to “preserve knowledge and information for future generations and to “preserve nationally published archives of the British Isles.” [95] The purpose and intention of preserving publications for national posterity also applied to other countries, including the United States.