 |
International Advisory Committee
|
The Sub-Committee
The vision
Achieving the vision
Patrons of "Memory of the World"
Programme sponsors
Specific sponsors
Acceptance within the community of librarians and archivists
A subscription scheme based on major libraries
National tie-ins
Listings
Merchandising
Securing sponsors
Legal framework
The Marketing Sub-Committee is composed of
Professor Jon Bing (Norwegian Council of Cultural Affairs, Head)
as Chair, Ms Sandy Norman (International Federation of Library
Associations) as Rapporteur, Ms Isabelle Rambaud (International
Council of Archives), Mr Bendik Rugaas (National Librarian, Norway),
Mr Fathi Saleh (Cultural Counselor to the Embassy of Egypt, France),
and Mr Ian E. Wilson (Archivist of Ontario, Canada). The ""Memory
of the World"" Programme Officer Abdelaziz Abid and
Ms Ingunn Kvisterøy, Deputy Secretary-General of the Norwegian
National Commission for UNESCO,
attended the meeting.
The Sub-Committee emphasized that the vision
behind the ""Memory of the World"" Programme
was firm and clear. The mission to preserve and communicate the
most significant documentary heritage of the different nations
and cultures of the world to the international community and to
the future, employing information technology, is readily understood
and appeals to the imagination. It is a unique and sound feature
of the Programme and one should place one's trust in this vision
when promoting the Programme and seeking economic support.
The Sub-Committee complimented UNESCO
on the high quality of the design of the logo and the print material
that it had prepared for this initiative. They laid the foundation
for a successful marketing plan. The Proclamation of the First
International ""Memory of the World"" Conference
noted that the forthcoming millennium focuses media attention
on the documentary record as the basic source of understanding
of the developments of the past century and millennium. It provides
a unique opportunity for the establishment of the "Memory
of the World" Programme. The first, or Establishment Phase,
of the Programme should be planned to take full advantage of this
opportunity. This phase should focus on several objectives:
The Sub-Committee discussed the structure
of the Programme. The components are clear:
In addressing the financial requirements of
individual projects, several models are possible - outright grants,
partnerships with other funders or loans. Properly conceived and
marketed, certain computerization projects can earn revenue. Part
of such revenue should be used to conserve the original materials
and some should help defray the overall costs of the "Memory
of the World" Programme. To achieve the Programme's potential,
creative partnerships and appropriate revenue generation must
be part of every project. To establish the image and reputation
of the "Memory of the World" Programme, the initial
years should be devoted to emphasizing identification and designation
of the most important library and archives holdings around the
world. The co-operation of the major libraries and archives is
vital. The projects selected for support must be inclusive of
all cultures and convey the compelling vision of the "Memory
of the World" initiative to all who hear of them. The Sub-Committee
noted that few of the projects currently under consideration achieve
this level of recognition and that in this initial phase, a proactive
effort will be required to place the Programme on a footing that
will attract and deserve world-wide recognition.
Patrons of "Memory of the World"
The Sub-Committee noted with interest the
idea of securing a small, but exclusive, number of Patrons of
the "Memory of the World" Programme. Several names for
such patrons were put forward in the discussion; at this stage
they should be considered merely as examples.
It was emphasized that before such persons
were approached for patronage, one should have a very clearly
defined plan. From one viewpoint, one would like to have programme
sponsors before approaching the patrons: yet patrons may be one
of the features that would attract programme sponsors. The question
as to the order in which to organize the contacts with possible
patrons and sponsors was not answered by the Sub-Committee, but
the "package" to be proposed to the sponsors ideally
should also be available when approaching the possible patrons.
The patrons would not be expected to do much more than lend their
name and support to the Programme, but hopefully they would participate
in a videogram or another presentation. It was suggested that
a broadcasting company would probably be willing to finance the
production of such a videogram featuring the patrons and presenting
the Programme, provided the company got a share of the rights
to such a programme.
The Sub-Committee considered it appropriate
to attempt attracting some major global firms as programme sponsors,
the number indicated being between 10-20 companies. These would
be given the right for a period of, say, five years to associate
their products with a legend indicating that they were programme
sponsors for the "Memory of the World" (in contrast
to sponsors for more limited efforts for a certain project, or
within one country, see below). They should be given access to
the sponsors to the degree allowed by the agreement between the
sponsors and the Programme and one would be able to introduce
the sponsors to decision-makers within the framework of the Programme.
In the Establishment Phase, sponsors may also
be active partners offering technology and marketing expertise
as well as funds. The sponsors should be approached with a "package"
including a presentation of the Programme (the promotion leaflet,
perhaps prototype CD-ROMs),
the "faces" fronting the Programme (see below), a review
of the possible projects to be undertaken within the Programme
(a re-drafted version of the "Pending requests and project
proposals" pro memoria). Potential sponsors to be
approached should have a certain affinity with the vision inherent
in the idea behind the "Memory of the World" Programme.
Examples of possible sponsors would be:
The Sub-Committee was aware that the companies
it named emphasized US-based ones and that a better balance should
be sought. One should also give serious thought to the advantages
that could be offered to the Programme sponsors. The Sub-Committee
considered the draft Internal Guidelines for Private Sector Fund-Raising
in Favour of UNESCO
(Annex IX). It was felt that the exploration of UNESCO's
name and reputation would be valuable and that access to governmental
decision-makers within the framework of the Programme might be
of interest [items (i) and (iv) of the first item of summarized
commercial interests]. The contribution should certainly be acknowledged
and a certificate or similar issued to confirm the support. There
might also be an interest in joint projects.
The Sub-Committee considered that for substantial
contributions, the sponsors should be able to use in their advertising
the "Memory of the World" logo and words like "official
sponsor" for a limited number of years. But the main incentive
would be, the Sub-Committee felt, the possibility of associating
the products or services of the sponsor with the Programme and
its logo. This actually feeds back to the need to make the Programme
and its logo well known and respected. Before approaching corporate
sponsors, a suitable 6-year, or multi-year, project plan with
defined objectives, a multi-year budget, specific guidelines of
projects and partnerships and clear expectations of UNESCO
and the role of the private sponsors should be prepared. We have
elements for this, but many parts remains vague.
Sponsors should also be sought for specific
projects and countries. National Committees should be encouraged
to find national programme sponsors. This would follow
more or less the same lines as the Programme sponsors.
The Sub-Committee also briefly considered
each of the specific proposals in the pro memoria on "Pending
requests and projects proposals". An improvised statistic
was drawn up, which indicated that a majority of the projects
had African or Asian background (24 out of the 39) and that 15
were concerned with manuscripts. There certainly is a bias in
favour of countries that need the economic support offered through
the Programme. The Sub-Committee sees no problem in this, provided
that countries where national funding is available can have their
national projects included in the Programme (see below). In several
of the projects, sponsors are already indicated, among them the
agencies for developing countries in several developed countries.
The projects are currently also in a very different state with
respect to budget, project organization, etc. It is suggested
that those projects to be presented to possible programme sponsors
should be tested against certain minimum criteria in order for
them to be perceived as realistic and important. As an example
of a project well suited for a sponsor, the Sub-Committee identified
"From Baghdad to Isfahan - the Book of Herbs". The Sub-Committee
indicated that a pharmaceutical company would be interested in
having its trade name associated with the publication of a facsimile
in paper or machine-readable medium of such a rare and beautiful
book.
Acceptance within the community of librarians and archivists
The Sub-Committee emphasized that the success
of the Programme would rely upon deep penetration of the community
(or communities) of librarians and archivists. It was indicated
that the current promotion had not been sufficiently successful
in engaging the individual members of the community. The SubCommittee
noted that a number of computerization initiatives are being undertaken
by various libraries and archives around the world, frequently
in partnership with a private corporation. Many of these are structured
to repay expenses over time or to generate a profit. Some of these
deal with collections which by popular consensus would be seen
as an integral part of our collective memory. The "Memory
of the World" Programme needs to develop some clear benefits
to attract such initiatives under its umbrella. The Sub-Committee
doubted that general flyers or leaflets would be assigned sufficient
importance to carry the message deep into the community. It was
suggested, however, that one might want to approach some "faces"
or "names" to develop such material. Among the names
(or "faces") suggested were Umberto Eco and Catherine
Deneuve, as well as Nobel Prize laureates.
A subscription scheme based on major libraries
Related to the issue set out above was the suggestion to directly involve the national libraries of different countries, in addition to major public or university libraries. It was suggested that one might try to create a subscription scheme among the national libraries for CD-ROMs produced within the Programme. This might indeed provide the Programme with a certain guaranteed edition of each CD-ROM that would make the economic risk of producing such a product sufficiently small to make it possible to carry out projects with a relatively modest contribution from sponsors. This would also create a distribution system which would make sponsors more prone to take an interest in joint projects, etc, as there would be a warranty for global distribution of the final product.
The SubCommittee suggested that consideration
be given to designing a series format for all
CDROM projects under this Programme.
The external appearance of the packaging should follow a defined
format and the contents should have a similar structure, using
for the introductory and descriptive material in every instance
the language appropriate to the original document recorded, as
well as English.
The vision of the "Memory of the World"
Programme is shared by many within the area of cultural policies
and several countries with sufficient national resources are attempting
to realize the same ideals based on their own budgets. There should
be a possibility for such projects to apply to the Programme in
order to achieve the status of a "Memory of the World"
project. This would presuppose some sort of assessing procedure.
There should not be an automatic issuing of such a label: it should
only be awarded where the - perhaps still to be properly specified
- criteria for the Programme qualify the project as part of the
"Memory of the World" Programme. As such an assessment
procedure would involve costs, one should also consider whether
applications should be associated with a fee, a fee that perhaps
not only would cover the costs of the assessment of the national
project, but also contribute towards covering the general costs
of the Programme. This item is not, however, the most important
aspect of the national tie-ins, i.e. the fact that the "Memory
of the World" Programme should not be the name for projects
that have a certain funding, but rather projects that have a certain
objective, e.g. creating a library of the world's most significant
documentary heritage.
The Sub-Committee identified a certain potential
in two of the proposed lists drawn up as part of the Programme.
One was the "Memory of the World Register". This would
list both projects carried out within the Programme and nationally-funded
projects that were accepted as part of the Programme. It would
be important that those projects that found their place on the
list should mutually support their prestige and value for the
world community. The second was the list of Lost Memory - Libraries
and Archives destroyed in the Twentieth Century. The Sub-Committee
felt that it reflected the other side of the coin with respect
to the Programme and therefore would give a substantial contribution
to the promotion of the Programme if made sufficiently available
to the public.
Both lists will be part of the "Memory of the World" web site to be opened later this year.
The Sub-Committee also recommended that general
strategies for merchandising be considered. Many examples of merchandising
were mentioned, including:
The Sub-Committee agreed that the activities
sketched in this memorandum would require an experienced organization
to offer and negotiate sponsorship contracts with possible sponsors
and to organize other activities indicated. Though no preference
was voiced during the meeting, the Sub-Committee welcomed the
initiative of Mr Rugaas and Mr Bing to have preliminary talks
with the Sponsor Service organization responsible for fund-raising
for the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer and currently
establishing an international network.
Rights clearance.
Although most of the works to be computerized will be out of copyright,
there is still the barrier of having to ask the owners of the
physical medium containing the works for permission to use them.
It was reported that many owners fear "cultural tourism"
which could potentially damage their tourist industry. If the
works can be seen on a CDROM
or on the network, the owners think
that the tourists will not make the effort to visit the real thing.
The SubCommittee agreed that the opposite was true
more people will be encouraged to visit the originals. It will
spark enthusiasm. Once the works have been digitized, depending
on the complexity of the product, there are other primary copyrights
to consider: publisher, editor, storyboarder, commentators,
translators, sound production, music rights, composers' rights,
performers' rights (voice-overs, etc.) phonogram producers'
rights, software producers' rights and so forth.
Copyright concerns.
The SubCommittee addressed the possible copyright problems.
There is the problem common to all publishers: how much copying
will damage the market? Easy access to the material is a prerequisite
of the Programme: so, because it will be easily available, many
copies or extracts could be made. It was agreed to offer a mixture
of free and pay viewing for on-line access. A different system
of payment was needed for those who wish to use it for research
or private study. Also discussed was whether it was necessary
to use security devices on products such as watermarking, tattooing
or fingerprinting. The question was also raised about photographers'
rights: is there a copyright if an image is scanned as the scanned
work will just be a facsimile copy? Similarly, is there a copyright
if a digital camera is used? The quality of resolution was raised
as a factor in copying. It is possible to offer very high resolution
quality images. It was agreed that we should offer the highest
resolution possible, even though this is costly in money and storage.
However, at present it is impossible to receive high resolution
quality on-line.
Rights management. As a rule 60% of the published price covers marketing and communication. The question was raised as to whether the owners of the physical media should be entitled to royalties. Another problem to consider was how to share a percentage of a product when it is distributed on-line. It was agreed that contractual arrangements were important to ensure fairness to all parties. It was felt that owners were likely to want a far higher share because of the fear of the loss of tourism.
The example of two Egyptian CD-ROMs
was cited. Consideration had to be given to the owners, the copyright
owners (storyboarders, publishers), derived material and
on-line access. The proceeds were split 40:30:30 between the owners
of the manuscripts, the developers and the publishers.
A decision should be made regarding rights
administration. It was agreed that a contract or memorandum was
necessary for each clearance. UNESCO
will have to put a representative sample of images on the network.
Ethical Issues.
The SubCommittee discussed certain ethical issues. Technology
is available which would allow images to be manipulated and improved.
It was agreed that for primary material there should be no such
manipulation. The raw data should be available for scholars and
researchers. Adding editorial material with manipulations could
be considered. The aim should be to ensure that entire files are
included where possible.
In general, it was agreed that use should
be noncommercial. Permission to exploit a
work commercially should be obtained from UNESCO.
Any money generated from commercial exploitation should go to
owners to be used for preservation of the original manuscripts
or archives, etc. Owners should receive remuneration for the benefit
of the collection only, not for personal gain. Unauthorized use
should be discouraged.
It was agreed that guidelines and a code of
ethics should be developed. For instance, UNESCO
should avoid dealing with disputed material - property whose ownership
is controversial - e.g., war booty. However, the SubCommittee
appreciated that a great deal of material is subject to international
dispute. What is happening to it may well be observed, but it
is not in our remit to interfere.
Oslo 30/05/97
Jon Bing