Carleton rejects Access Copyright license agreement

Carleton University is the latest Canadian school to turn down a controversial intellectual property agreement with Access Copyright, announcing its decision Thursday, the Ottawa Citizen reports. The agreement would have cost full-time students an extra $26 per year.

Negotiated on behalf of Canadian universities by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, the license agreement is meant to ensure copyright holders are equitably paid for the use of their educational material. It was also billed as a way to shield institutions from lawsuits. But critics claim the legal risk is low, and that the agreement would do nothing more than raise fees for university students.

The agreement has also been rejected by the University of British Columbia, Memorial University, the University of Waterloo, the University of Winnipeg, and others.