US Supreme Court Puts Low Cost Textbooks for Developing Countries at Risk

In Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc, the US Supreme Court decided on 19 March 2013 that the “first sale” doctrine applies to copies of a copyrighted work lawfully made abroad. Consequently, an American publisher in the future may be unable to prevent the unauthorized importation into the United States of low cost editions of its textbooks produced for developing markets.