Six Publishers Again Sue Florida Copy Shop Owner

MAIN NEWS HEADLINES

February 16-23, 2006 Edition

Six Publishers

Again Sue Florida

Copy Shop Owner

GAINESVILLE, FL/2/9/06—Accusing a Gainesville copy shop owner with repeat illegal behavior he had already pledged to stop, six publishers have filed a lawsuit against Kenneth R. Roberts, president of Custom Copies, 1202 NW 9th Ave. The publishers allege that Roberts is illegally copying and distributing copyrighted materials and selling them to University of Florida students.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Gainesville Division, by Elsevier, Inc., Pearson Education, Inc., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., SAGE Publications, Inc., Harvard Business School Publishing and Blackwell Publishing, Inc. The publishers allege that Custom Copies, which also did business as Orange and Blue Textbooks, routinely duplicated and distributed copyrighted materials in the form of print coursepacks (compilations of book excerpts and articles from magazines and scholarly journals) without obtaining copyright permission from the publishers directly or through Copyright Clearance Center.

Roberts had already settled a previous suit for copyright infringement brought against him in October 2002 by Elsevier, Inc., John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"Mr. Roberts is well aware that permission is required to copy published materials in coursepacks," said Attorney William Strong of Kotin, Crabtree & Strong, LLP, a Boston law firm that represents the publishers. "Custom Copies' illegal infringement compromises the ability of publishers to produce the work of writers and researchers, who as a result do not receive all of their rightful compensation. Moreover, it gives Custom Copies an illegal and unfair advantage over its law-abiding competitors. It's unfortunate that legal action is required to preserve a fair and lawful market among the copy shops serving Gainesville's higher education community."

Like many college-area copy shops, Custom Copies engages in a substantial business selling coursepacks, the contents of which are selected by instructors as required reading in their classes. To comply with copyright law, copy shops must get permission to distribute the materials they reproduce and pay royalty fees to the copyright holders. Most coursepack licensing is done through Copyright Clearance Center (www.copyright.com), a not-for-profit company located in Danvers, MA, that provides one-stop permission services on behalf of thousands of publishers for more than 1,000 U.S. colleges and universities.

"This is one of the biggest cases of repeat copyright infringement by a copy shop on record, and we believe the specific allegations cited in the law suit are representative of a much larger pattern of unauthorized copying by Custom Copies," said Allan A. Ryan, Jr., Director of Intellectual Property, Harvard Business School Publishing. "Publishers and authors suffer serious financial damage if copyrights are not respected. In addition, many journals are published in cooperation with non-profit educational organizations and scholarly societies that depend on journal revenue to further their important work. Piracy jeopardizes that income. Businesses must recognize that permission is required for academic course materials that contain copyright-protected content."

About Blackwell Publishing

Blackwell Publishing is the world's leading society publisher, partnering with 665 academic and professional societies. Blackwell publishes over 800 journals and, to date, has published more than 6,000 books, across a wide range of academic, medical, and professional subjects. The company remains independent with more than 950 staff members in offices in the US, UK, Australia, China, Denmark, Singapore, Germany, and Japan. Blackwell's mission as an expert publisher is to create long-term partnerships with clients to enhance learning, disseminate research, and improve the quality of professional practice. For more information on Blackwell Publishing, please visit: www.blackwellpublishing.com or www.blackwell-synergy.com ) .

About Elsevier, Inc.

Elsevier is a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. Working in partnership with the global science and health communities, Elsevier's 7,000 employees in over 70 offices worldwide publish more than 2,000 journals and 1,900 new books per year, in addition to offering a suite of innovative electronic products, such as ScienceDirect , MD Consult, Scopus, bibliographic databases, and online reference works. Elsevier is a global business headquartered in Amsterdam, The Netherlands and has offices worldwide. Elsevier is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a world-leading publisher and information provider. Operating in the science and medical, legal, education and business-to-business sectors, Reed Elsevier provides high-quality and flexible information solutions to users, with increasing emphasis on the Internet as a means of delivery. Reed Elsevier's ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).

About Pearson Education, Inc.

Educating 100 million people worldwide, Pearson Education ( www.pearsoned.com) is the global leader in educational publishing, providing scientifically research-based print and digital programs to help students of all ages learn at their own pace, in their own way. The company is home to such renowned publishing brands as Pearson Prentice Hall, Pearson Addison Wesley, Pearson Allyn & Bacon, Pearson Benjamin Cummings and Pearson Longman. Pearson Education is part of Pearson (NYSE: PSO), the international media company. In addition to Pearson Education, Pearson's primary operations include the Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group.

About Harvard Business School Publishing

Harvard Business School Publishing (HBSP) is a not-for-profit, wholly-owned subsidiary of Harvard University. Its mission is to improve the practice of management in a changing world. HBSP does this by serving as a bridge between academia and enterprises around the globe through its publications and reach into three markets: academic, enterprise, and individual managers. Its business units are Harvard Business Review magazine and article reprints, Harvard Business School Press books, Harvard Business School Publishing Newsletters, Harvard Business School Publishing Conferences, Harvard Business School Publishing Higher Education, and Harvard Business School Publishing eLearning. For more information, please visit www.harvardbusinessonline.com.

About John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Founded in 1807, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., provides must-have content and services to customers worldwide. Its core businesses include scientific, technical, and medical journals, encyclopedias, books, and online products and services; professional and consumer books and subscription services; and educational materials for undergraduate and graduate students and lifelong learners. Wiley has publishing, marketing, and distribution centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The Company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbols JWa and JWb. Wiley's Internet site can be accessed at www.wiley.com.

About SAGE Publications, Inc.

SAGE Publications ( www.sagepub.com) is a leading international publisher of journals, books and electronic media for scholarly, educational and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students. SAGE Publications, a privately owned corporation, has principal offices in Thousand Oaks, California; London, United Kingdom; and New Delhi, India