About the Webinar In June of 2013, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) agreed to a landmark treaty in Marrakesh, Morocco to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled. This treaty outlined for the first time a set of principles regarding the rights of the print-disabled to have all content made equally accessible for them. The opportunities afforded by digital content distribution to provide accessibility functionality built-in from the start of a publisher’s production process and then be carried throughout the distribution process are tremendous. This session will provide an overview of the treaty, discuss its potential implications, and describe how standardized technology can facilitate access to the visually-impaired community. Agenda Introduction Todd Carpenter, Executive Director, NISO Setting the Standards: Identifying Rights for Print-disabled and Visually Impaired George Kerscher, Secretary General DAISY Consortium, and President, International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) Making History in Marrakesh: How the Blind Led Everyone Else Thiru Balasubramaniam, Geneva Representative, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) Walking the Walk: A Publisher’s Perspective on Moving from Aspiration to Reality in Making Content Accessible Paul Belfanti, Director, Content Architecture, Enterprise Architecture & Core Platforms, Pearson Education

1. NISO Webinar:
Back from Marrakesh: Implementing an
Accessible Content World
April 9, 2014
Speakers:
George Kerscher, Secretary General DAISY Consortium,
and President, International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)
Thiru Balasubramaniam, Geneva Representative,
Knowledge Ecology International (KEI)
Paul Belfanti, Director, Content Architecture,
Enterprise Architecture & Core Platforms, Pearson Education
http://www.niso.org/news/events/2014/webinars/what_is_open/

2. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
Setting the Standards:
Identifying Rights for Print-
Disabled and Visually Impaired
George Kerscher

3. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
The Analog World and Libraries
Serving Persons Who are Blind
• 4 - track half speed cassettes in North America
• 2 - track normal and half speed
• 4 - track normal speed
• Six track
• End of analog predicted in early 1980s
• Cross-border exchange common

4. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
DAISY Consortium is Born
- Formed in 1996
- Goal: To develop the next generation of technology
- Focused on user requirements
- Structural navigation: Chapter, section, subsection, etc.
-- Go to page
-- Spell words
-- Search
- Requirements point to text and audio synchronization

5. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
W3C, HTML and SMIL
- Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL)
W3C recommendation in 1999
- DAISY 2.02 published in 1999
- Started NISO developments in circa 1999
- DAISY 3 NISO 39.86 Specification for the Digital Talking
Book, 2002

6. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
Worldwide Adoption of DAISY
What Does This Mean?
- In 2000 in the USA, cross-border exchange stops
- Digital was deemed different
- Outcry from Canada, students could not get their
textbooks any more
- While there was not much available, the small
supply was stopped
- Outcry around the world

7. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
Heat is turned up in WIPO
- Standards in place worldwide
- WBU starts the Right to Read Campaign
- Accessible book famine is identified

8. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
IDPF Formed in 1999
(Originally OeBF)
- Disability community involved from the beginning
- OeB 1.0 released in 2000
- DRM locked out accessibility
- “Sound Proof Book” published by Fruchterman and
Kerscher in 2002
- Chant: “Same book, same time, same price”

9. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
EPUB 3, Target for Future DAISY
Specifications
- One standard is better than two
- Accessibility features woven into EPUB 3
- EPUB 3 released in October 2012
- EPUB 3 endorsed by DAISY Consortium

10. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
Issues Arising from Marrakesh
Treaty June 2013
- Must be ratified by countries to take effect
- Hundreds of thousands of EPUB titles commercially available today
- NLS in the USA has more than 3,600 patrons over the age of 100 (number
changes daily)
-- Technical expertise of end users is a limitation
- Enhancements of titles will be needed:
-- Image descriptions beyond alt text
-- Tactile graphics
-- 3D printing of models
-- Human narration
- Simple distribution mechanisms

11. Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish
More Work to Be Done
to Create an Inclusive
Publishing Ecosystem
Thank you!

12. The Marrakesh treaty for
blind negotiations
Thiru Balasubramaniam, KEI
9 April 2014
NISO Webinar

13. Nature of the problem
Often difficult, impractical or impossible to get permissions
to make works accessible
No or inadequate exceptions for persons who are blind or
have other disabilities in many (mostly developing)
countries
Very limited cross border trade in accessible works, leading
to wasteful duplication, and astonishing disparities in
access.

14. In July 2008, KEI and WBU co-convened
meeting of experts in Washington DC, to
write a draft treaty text
The WBU draft treaty text was circulated to WIPO
delegates in fall of 2008, and introduced as a formal
proposal by Brazil, Ecuador and Paraguay in the
Spring of 2009.
WIPO “Group B” countries were in opposition to the
treaty, and advocated voluntary measures

15. Obama White House warmed to treaty in
2009, but later worked with publishers to
tried to block a binding agreement
Susan Crawford, Kareem Dale and Andrew McLaughlin in the White House
and Arti Rai at USPTO supported the treaty. After Crawford and Rai left the
administration, the Obama Administration moved into opposition.
In 2011, the Obama Administration proposed a non-treaty outcome, and asked
that deaf people be removed as beneficiaries.
The USA was the last country on earth to agree to a diplomatic conference for
a treaty, in December of 2012.
Before agreeing to a diplomatic conference, the Obama Administration
demanded that audio visual works be excluded from the treaty.

16. European Parliament changed EU
position on the treaty
The European Blind Union and TACD were very successful
in engaging the European Parliament on the treaty
negotiations. By 2011, the Parliament was supporting
the treaty, leading eventually to a change in position by
the European Commission. Within the EU, France and
Germany were the strongest opponents.
The conservative government in the UK and (non EU
member) Switzerland were surprise early supporters of
the treaty.

17. World Blind Union

20. Washington Post: Filmmakers’ group tries
to reshape treaty that would benefit the
blind
By Kimberly Kindy,June 22, 2013
But the MPAA has been using its considerable clout with Washington officials
to press for changes in the accord, warning that loosening copyright
protections to help the blind could set a costly precedent. “What happens
here could affect other future treaties,” said Chris Marcich, who is in charge
of dealing with the negotiations for the MPAA
“They suddenly come out of the woodwork in the eleventh hour, and they’ve
risked blowing up the entire negotiation,” said Dan Pescod, vice chairman of
the World Blind Union’s campaign for reading rights.
The American entertainment industry has long been a muscular advocate for its interests. The movie
business, along with television, music, cable and Internet interests, contributed $20.7 million to
President Obama’s reelection campaign in 2012, according to the Center for Responsive Politics,
making entertainment the fourth-largest industry sector backing the president. The heads of
several major film studios, such as Warner Bros., are among the largest bundlers of Obama’s
campaign money.

21. A more few pictures and videos
from the negotiations
July 24-25, 2008 KEI/WBU Experts meeting
2009 SCCR 19
April 13, 2011 EU Parliament event
Some pictures from the early SCCR negotiations
Videos from June 2013 diplomatic conference

22. Treaty text
Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to
Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind,
Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print
Disabled
Contracting parties
On June 28, 2013, 51 countries signed the
treaty, a record for the 1st day open for
signatures: Link: contracting parties

23. Some issues in the negotiations

24. Article 7 Obligations Concerning
Technological Measures
Contracting Parties shall take appropriate measures, as
necessary, to ensure that when they provide adequate
legal protection and effective legal remedies against the
circumvention of effective technological measures, this
legal protection does not prevent beneficiary persons
from enjoying the limitations and exceptions provided for
in this Treaty [11].
11 Agreed statement concerning Article 7: It is understood that authorized
entities, in various circumstances, choose to apply technological measures
in the making, distribution and making available of accessible format copies
and nothing herein disturbs such practices when in accordance with
national law.

25. Article 2: Definitions
(a) "works" means literary and artistic works
within the meaning of Article 2(1) of the
Berne Convention for the Protection of
Literary and Artistic Works, in the form of
text, notation and/or related illustrations,
whether published or otherwise made publicly
available in any media [1];
1 Agreed statement concerning Article 2(a): For the
purposes of this Treaty, it is understood that this
definition includes such works in audio form, such as
audiobooks.

26. How an audio visual work can be
made accessible to both deaf and
blind persons
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6FY10JqiQ8

27. NISO Webinar • April 9, 2014
Questions?
All questions will be posted with presenter answers on
the NISO website following the webinar:
http://www.niso.org/news/events/2014/webinars/marrakesh/
NISO Webinar:
Back from Marrakesh: Implementing an
Accessible Content World

28. Thank you for joining us today.
Please take a moment to fill out the brief online survey.
We look forward to hearing from you!
THANK YOU