Special Collections & WWW Digital Images

This outline was prepared for a presentation given by Howard Besser to the University of Michigan Library's Special Collections Department on Nov 9, 1995. The presentation covered issues to take into consideration in deciding whether to put photographic images up on the WorldWide Web. Note: Some links may not be available outside the University of Michigan campus.

Broad Advantages & Disadvantages

Mounting Images at Michigan vs elsewhere

Image Quality

What do other Institutions do?

• Bancroft Library's Graves Collection
• UBC's Special Collections Library
• National Museum of American Art
• Univ of AZ Photo Archive
• National Library of Medicine's History of Medicine collection
• Dallas Museum of Art
• UC Berkeley's Earthquate Photo Archive

Unauthorized image use

• Elimination of credit line
• Use for commercial purposes
• Someone else implying ownership
• Maintaining the Integrity of the Image

Protection Methods

• Marking the image with ownership (visible or not) see Cameron Trowbridge's examples
• Encrypting or encapsulating the image
• Image quality see Cameron Trowbridge's examples
• Possible technology-based solutions for the display and distribution of copyrighted electronic images by Deborah Torres (student paper)
• Protecting Access to Images in the Museum Education Site Licensing Project: Legal and Technical Approaches by Cara List (student paper)
• Commercial digital signatures (Digimarc Corporation)

Effect on the Department

• Creating/Maintaining a WWW site
• Wear and tear on the images
• Handling external requests for Special Collection images
• Increase or decrease in requests to see originals?

Intellectual Property Issues

• Images and the WWW: A Guide to Copyright Issues Surrounding the Use of Images in Web Sites for Nonprofit Educational Organizations by Eileen Fenton (student paper)
• Protecting Access to Images in the Museum Education Site Licensing Project: Legal and Technical Approaches by Cara List (student paper)
• General Copyright issues

Licensing to the Private Sector

• No Easy Money by Geoff Samuels (samuels@inx.net), a report on museum options for licensing their content to others
• Content Vendors
  • Corbis Media
  • Seymour, Picture Network International (PNI)
  • Muse, West Stock Photo Agency
  • Black Star stock photos

Long Term Issues

• References