STATISTICAL SURVEY METHODS: THE BRITISH EXPERIENCE

The impetus for the establishment of a scheme that would protect authors and publishers from unauthorised use of copyright material came in part from a ten year struggle (successfully concluded in 1982 with the inception of the Public Lending Right scheme) to obtain payment for authors for copyright material lent to the public through public libraries. As photocopying machines became more readily available so copyright material became more vulnerable to unauthorised use in part or in whole. An area where photocopying was thought to be particularly extensive was that of education, and within that area the largest users are the Local Education Authorities. As this represented an area that was relatively well documented and the associations of local authorities were co‐operative in this matter, it was thought to be the point at which the task of collecting payment for the photocopying of copyright material should begin.