I'm a developer in the process of creating an app aimed at helping users read books, similar to Kindle, but I'm focusing on locally stored ebooks like PDFs and EPUBs for now. I've discussed my project with a few lecturers, and they've all warned me about the potential pitfalls regarding intellectual property (IP) rights. While I plan to extend functionality for accessing and downloading online books in the future, I'm particularly concerned about IP rights at this stage. Here are my main questions: 1. What steps can I take to ensure I'm not infringing on anyone's IP rights? 2. If the app only allows users to access books stored locally, but they have the option to share books with each other within the app, would that violate any laws?
5 Answers
To steer clear of any IP issues, avoid enabling sharing of user-uploaded books altogether. Stick to public domain books, like those available through Project Gutenberg. You can also think about integrating OPDS support, letting users enter URLs from public resources themselves – it could keep everything above board!
IP rights can definitely get complicated, and their enforcement varies by location. While I can't offer legal advice, I recommend checking out resources like Wikipedia or legal guides that explain IP in relation to file sharing to better understand the landscape. Just be careful about the content you allow on your platform!
If you want to share works without the original rights holder's okay, the safest route is to only deal with public domain or creative commons works that allow free distribution. Otherwise, sharing books can really get you into trouble!
Based on what I've seen, allowing users to share books within your app could be problematic. Since your app could be a platform for distributing commercial material, it might not be legal. In terms of your project, one way to avoid issues is to offer only public domain content, which doesn’t infringe on IP rights. There are many older works whose copyrights have expired, making them free to use. Just keep an eye out for that!
I don't think you can allow direct sharing of books unless you have clearance from the rights holders. A workaround could be adding a recommendation feature where users suggest books to each other, but the recipients would need to seek out their own copies. It keeps things safer for your app!
The correct term you're looking for is "public domain"; definitely check that out!