Last December, academic publishers Elsevier, Wiley, and American Chemical Society filed a lawsuit demanding that Indian ISPs block access to Sci-Hub and Libgen for copyright infringement. The ongoing case now includes an intervention application from a group of social science researchers who say that blocking the platforms would result in a great societal loss to the country. TorrentFreak reports: Assisted and represented by the Delhi-based Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), a group of social science researchers affiliated with universities across Delhi has now filed an intervention application that aims to educate the High Court on the negative implications of ordering local ISPs to block the platforms. “In the application, they have demonstrated the importance of the LibGen and Sci-Hub in enabling them to continue with research and discharge professional obligations,” IFF explains. “They have submitted that they cannot access countless essays/books/articles because of the exorbitant rates the publishers charge for them and that these publishers own more than 50% of the total output in social science research. The only way in which they can access these resources is by relying upon LibGen and Sci-Hub. Moreover, LibGen and Sci-Hub offer access to up-to-date research which is unavailable elsewhere.”
The social science researchers also draw attention to the publishers’ “prohibitive pricing” models that place a serious burden on the publicly-funded academic institutions where they conduct their research. They further note that, to the best of their knowledge, individual users who rely on Sci-Hub and Libgen have not dented the profits of the publishers. “The profit margins of the [publishers] are much higher than those of enterprises in other industries such as oil, medicines and technology. Thus, the Plaintiffs’ plea of blocking [Sci-Hub and Libgen] only serves their self-interest of increasing their coffers without benefitting society,” their application reads. “In fact, granting the Plaintiffs’ reliefs will have a detrimental impact on the social science research undertaken in India and the careers of the Applicants and those they represent before this Hon’ble Court. The unavailability of the Defendant Websites will also stunt the academic growth of the nation.”
After highlighting the risks to society should the Court authorize blocking, the researchers turn to the legality of doing so. They believe that while the publishers own the copyrights to the articles, the use of those articles is allowed under India’s Copyright Act, at least under certain conditions. […] Finally, the researchers say they are contesting any blocking injunction on the basis that it would be overbroad. They note that the publishers are not seeking the removal of specific infringing content but the blocking of entire websites in perpetuity. They argue that there are less restrictive measures available and these should have been sought first, rather than going directly for complete blocking of Sci-Hub and Libgen. Before issuing any blocking order, they also ask the court to consider Article 19(1) that recognizes the fundamental right to access information.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.