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.

b. National Information Policy

In March 1976, the President directed the Committee on the Right to Privacy (CRP) of the Domestic Council to make a comprehensive study of the emerging issues of information policy and recommend how the Federal government should address these issues. Critical matters to be examined included the growing information sector, the impact of computer and related technologies, the relationship between privacy and freedom of information, and access to information and information delivery systems. Faced with so complex a set of issues, such a broad charge, and a short time frame for its completion, the CRP asked NCLIS for assistance. The Commission organized an intensive two-day conference, at which 40 representatives of various sectors of the information community assembled to identify and analyze critical information issues from a variety of viewpoints.

The issues discussed were grouped in five categories: (1) government information collection, transfer, and dissemination; (2) information in commerce-a resource for public good and private gain; (3) the interaction between technology and government; (4) international implications of information policies and

developments; and (5) preparing for the information age. The recommendations that appeared in the report to the President may be summarized as follows: (1) the United States should set as a goal the development of a coordinated national information policy; (2) establish in the Executive Office of the President an Office of Information Policy; (3) create an interagency Council on Information Policy chaired by the Director of the Office of Information Policy; and (4) create an Advisory Committee to assist the Office of Information Policy in the performance of its duties. In January 1977, when the Committee report, National Information Policy, was released for publication, NCLIS was concerned that only a small number of copies would be printed. The Commission requested permission to publish the report and subsequently made it available to the Congress, concerned Executive departments, and the library and information science community. This major policy document will be reprinted by a commercial publisher as a part of a reprint collection of information policy documents issued by the Commission.

c. The White House Conference on Library and Information Services

Funds for a White House Conference on Libraries, an idea first proposed in 1957, were appropriated in 1977 at President Ford's request for a Conference that was convened in 1979 by President