Chandos Publishing is a British newcomer to publishers in the library and information management sector. In the past year, it has published a large number of books under the general editorship of Ruth Rikowski, but this is the first in the series to be written by her. Her theme is the pernicious impact of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and in particular its GATS Agreement on liberalisation of trade in services, and its TRIPS Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights (focussed on patents and copyright) on the traditions of librarianship embodied in the ideas of free and unfettered access to all to information. The book raises a number of important and rarely discussed issues regarding these two treaties and their implications for the profession, and makes a strong case for opposing both treaties. However, unfortunately, the author spoils her case by a combination of repetition and errors in places.
The book comprises 13 chapters (some of which are drawn from previous publications by the author), a bibliography, and no less than three indexes (of authors, places and organisations, and of subjects) – an idea that is eccentric and unhelpful. Despite its author arguing against over‐strong copyright laws, the publisher has placed a statement (which has no legal validity) at the start of the book that no part of the publication may be reproduced, stored or introduced into a retrieval system without the permission of the publisher.
Rikowski's fundamental argument is that the WTO's treaties are designed to assist globalisation and the power of large corporations at the expense of individuals, especially those in developing countries. She also argues that although not directly targeted at libraries, GATS is in principle applicable to libraries, and there is increasing evidence in the UK that government policy is pushing public libraries into a competitive marketplace. She states that the only answer to this creeping and insidious change is not adjusting the treaties or even adjusting capitalism, but a worldwide movement towards Marxist economics.
The early chapters outline the structure of the WTO and what the GATS Treaty involves. The author is convincing regarding the possible role of LIS professionals in the future in ensuring that peoples of developing countries fully understand the implications of these treaties and provide ways to prevent exploitation by big business. However, the author's frequent repetition of the same arguments and of events is mildly annoying. Even more frustrating is the fact that the author, although she cites a lot of literature, fails to cite the many serious economics articles on the two treaties[1], and fails to draw from the numerous left wing and libertarian writings on copyright and other intellectual property rights[2]. Indeed, even if one accepts that capitalism is the root a problem here, she fails to convince why Marxism is the solution rather than, say, anarchism. She also fails to address the fact that in those countries that adopted Marxism, information flow is far more restricted than in capitalist countries, and their track record for innovation in both the creative and industrial innovation areas has been poor.
Another weakness is the implication that information has only recently been considered a commodity. From the start of printing – and arguably before that – information was exchanged for money. The notion of the free public library is relatively recent and, as is well known, is largely due to the generosity of one of the most notorious arch‐capitalists, Andrew Carnegie. The argument that market research is intimately tied to creating capitalist markets (and therefore public libraries should not do it) is unconvincing – public libraries should undertake such research to understand their users' needs. The suggestion on page 117 that private companies will get round the Data Protection Act shows a misunderstanding of that Act, which applies equally to private individuals and large corporations. The author states that the donation of money by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the People's Network is sinister. Would the author have preferred the UK not to have received the money – and indeed, is she arguing that the UK should have rejected Carnegie's money all those years ago?
The section on micropayments is somewhat flawed. Relying on an old report, Rikowski claims that such systems will fundamentally change the nature of libraries' relationships with patrons. However, she offers no alternative way for public libraries to charge for access to electronic information – unless she is recommending that the open‐ended cost be borne by the public library itself, in other words, by taxpayers. One way or another, the costs have to borne by someone. The author seems to want a Utopia where all information, print and electronic, is available free of charge to users without limitation. Whether you are a Marxist or a capitalist, such a model is unsustainable. Rikowski also does not seem to realise that libraries have been charging for access to electronic information for decades now (or has she not heard of DIALOG?), and that recent services such as Netlibrary, eBrary and Questia are not in any way fundamentally different and are certainly not complete electronic libraries as the author claims. The author also seems unaware of initiatives such as HINARI, by which publishers of high‐priced electronic materials offer them to developing countries at deeply discounted prices or free of charge, and ignores the move towards Open Access, which will provide free access to scholarly information to all. Perhaps she will dismiss these initiatives, too, as part of a capitalist plot to keep developing nations down? It certainly was a mistake to ignore them.
Additionally, the author fails to consider the mass of free information available on the web, seeing only gloom and doom in the form of priced services. Talk to a producer of an expensive database, such as Derwent Information, and you will get insight into the serious impact such free services have on high priced electronic services.
The author makes much play of the fact that moral rights are not covered by TRIPS, which is true, but misses the point that nothing in TRIPS prevents countries from adopting moral rights in their national legislations. The implication that countries must drop moral rights in order to join TRIPS is misleading.
On patents, the author completely ignores the important information function of patents and its role in helping individuals and countries develop. This is a surprising omission considering the thrust of the book and the fact that this is central to the bargain between the inventor and the patent‐issuing authority[3].
The book is well typeset, but has a few typographical or factual errors, sometimes caused by earlier work not being updated for the book (for example, cable programmes are no longer covered by the UK Copyright Act, and her discussion on fees levels for Freedom of Information is badly dated). One serious factual error is the claim on page 265 that TRIPS trumps Freedom of Information, when in fact the reverse is the case. The author makes two unworthy claims – that CILIP deliberately failed to acknowledge the author in its work on these topics, and that a public librarian's suicide was linked to privatisation of that person's library. Both allegations are unsubstantiated. Also, she claims that UK Best Value initiative is a deliberate attempt to introduce GATS by the back door, but she provides no evidence to support this claim – perhaps she should exercise her rights under Freedom of Information to establish the facts? She also claims the timing of the People's Network was deliberate to coincide with the passage of GATS – again, providing no supporting evidence. Similarly, the claim that big business is against free flow of information because too much information will lead to people challenging the status quo and thinking about socialism is another conspiracy theory without supporting evidence. Without evidence, conspiracy theories are not appropriate for a book such as this, and her claims certainly do not convince me, who tends to believe in cock ups rather than conspiracies as being the main driver of world events.
At times, too, the author ties herself in knots in over‐convoluted arguments – her text on pages 226 and 260 are examples. The author's argument that corporations understand copyright law better than individuals is, from my experience as an observer of and consultant in the field, the opposite of the case. Rikowski acknowledges that some of her dire predictions will not come to pass, but claims that “this does not lessen the strength of my argument”. Sorry, but it does! Overall, I was totally unconvinced by the author's claim that the only way to address the issues raised by WTO is a total change of our political and economic system.
Despite my long list of criticisms, this is an important, if polemical contribution to discussions on the role of LIS professionals in society. It is aimed at both library professionals and at their associations, such as CILIP, IFLA and EBLIDA. You will not always agree with the author's arguments, but the overall thrust of the book is one that LIS professionals should pay attention to. We do need to become more aware of, and more involved in, debates about GATS and TRIPS. Both potentially damage the patrons of the library profession and run counter to its overall ethos. The book should be compulsory reading for policy advisors in LIS professional associations, is recommended to all those interested in the role of librarianship in society, and, although not specifically aimed at them, is also recommended to teachers and students of topics such as “The information society” and of legal, professional and ethical issues. But be aware of the book's many shortcomings.
Notes
1.See, for example, the collection of K.E. Maskus (Ed.), The WTO, Intellectual Property Rights and the Knowledge Economy, Edward Arnold, 2004.
2.See, for example, B. Martin, Information Liberation, Freedom Press, 1998, Liberty, Liberating Cyberspace, Pluto Press, 1999 or the many contributions by John Perry Barlow or E. Moglen.
3.See, for example, C. Oppenheim, “Information aspects of patents”, in J. Phillips (Ed.), Patents in Perspective, ESC Publishing, 1985, pp. 54‐67.
