for Information Science sponsored a series of meetings with a group of people who became known as the Information Community Organization Heads. Secondly, the Chairman appointed an Information Community Advisory Committee composed of representatives from all three sectors of the information community. The majority of the members of both of these groups were from the private sector.

Several of the resolutions emerging from the White House Conference major theme of Library and Information Services for Organizations and the Professions deal directly with the private sector. Subsequently NCLIS, in cooperation with the Special Libraries Association (SLA), established a Task Force on the Role of the Special Library in Nationwide Networks and Cooperative Programs which included representation of both private and public sector special libraries.

OBJECTIVE 7. ESTABLISH A LOCUS OF FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITY CHARGED WITH IMPLEMENTING THE NATIONAL NETWORK AND COORDINATING THE NATIONAL PROGRAM UNDER THE POLICY GUIDANCE OF THE NATIONAL COMMISSION

Recognizing both the need for a coordinating agency and the difficulties involved in assigning authority for "implementing the national network and coordinating the National Program," the Commission has stressed the need for a thorough investigation of the possible alternatives for a governance structure.

Between 1976 and 1980 the Commission initiated and/or was a participant in three activities that provided for public discussion in the library and information community and the private sector on the issue of governance. The first was a jointly sponsored conference with the School of Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh. This meeting provided an opportunity for the "stakeholders" to be heard on the subject of networks and their functions, objectives and governance. The conference was cochaired by the Chairman of NCLIS and the Dean of the library school, and its proceedings were published as Structure and Governance of Library Networks in 1979.

The pivotal role of the Library of Congress (LC) in any widespread effort in the field makes it one of the major foci of cooperative efforts. By law, the Librarian of Congress is the only permanent member of NCLIS. From its inception, NCLIS has participated in the work of LC's Network Advisory Committee (NAC) and has used the opportunity not only to provide objective input to NAC's deliberations but also to communicate with the other

Committee members, who represent the communities involved in networking. A second opportunity for the discussion of governance of a nationwide network was afforded by the Network Advisory Committee's paper on the governance of the evolving nationwide bibliographic network. The paper was developed at a two-day meeting of NAC and then shared both by mail and in open fora at various meetings of the American Library Association, the Special Libraries Association and the American Society for Information Science.

Another Commission activity that provided considerable opportunity for the discussion of governance of a national program was the series of studies on the necessity, desirability and organization of a National Periodicals Systems or Center. In studies by both NCLIS and the Council on Library Resources, the issue of governance was discussed and many suggestions considered. As is mentioned elsewhere in this report, in the revision of the Higher Education Act in 1979, a Title II, Part D was added that includes a governance structure modeled after the recommendation of the NCLIS Task Force on a National Periodicals System. Implementation of that part of the Higher Education Act is awaiting funds and further study.

OBJECTIVE 8. PLAN, DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A
NATIONWIDE NETWORK OF LIBRARY AND
INFORMATION SERVICE

Regarding this objective the National Program Document states,
"The National Commission believes that only by interrelating the
pluralistic cooperative programs of the past and providing a
national frame of reference for future development will the Nation
be able to achieve optimum exploitation of the rich information and
knowledge resources in the United States." Thus a large number of
the Commission's major accomplishments over the past decade
directly or indirectly relate to this objective.

a. Copyright

The subject of copyright has been of continuing interest to the Commission since its inception. One of its first communications to the Congress was a recommendation on the pending revision of the Copyright Law. A major unresolved issue at the time was whether library photocopying for the purpose of interlibrary loan

constituted copyright infringement and whether the practice was adversely affecting the revenues of the copyright owners.

In 1974, the Chairman of the Commission and the Register of Copyrights convened a continuing Conference on Resolution of Copyright Issues to which representatives of virtually every constituency with an interest in the problem were invited. One of the proposals to the Conference called for the collection of data on the amount and type of library photocopying and the cost of administering a royalty payment mechanism. The Conference adopted this recommendation, and NCLIS agreed to sponsor the study.

With additional funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works (CONTU), NCLIS awarded a contract to King Research Company that resulted in the first analysis of library photocopying, performed with the participation of both users and owners of copyrighted material, and provided a factual basis for subsequent negotiations.

At the Commission's request, Congress added a section to the Copyright Revision Act that called for a review of the photocopying provisions at intervals no greater than five years. NCLIS in conjunction with a number of Federal agencies and representatives of the library and publishing fields, helped make another modification to the Act that would allow photocopying for interlibrary loan, but provide protection for copyright holders from abuse of this privilege. Guidelines for this modification were incorporated in the subcommittee report on the bill.

The Copyright Revision Act is a major step toward resolution of the library photocopying issue. The impact of this law will be reviewed for the first time in 1983. The Commission has already been asked to advise in the preparation of the review.

Photocopying is not the only point of contention between users and owners of copyrighted materials. The availability of video cassette recorders has prompted many educational institutions to make off-air video tape copies of television programs for classroom and other use. Producers, performers, networks, and many others objected to this practice as a violation of their rights. The Copyright Office sponsored another conference similar to those held on library photocopying to begin the process of mutual education and interaction between the parties, with the goal of reaching an accommodation. NCLIS participated in the conference and has continued to play an advisory role. The final report of the conference was subsequently accepted by Congressman Kastenmeier's subcommittee and made an official part of the Congressional Record.