After copyright wrangle, Scholastic promises better deal for competition entrants

After 8th-grader Sasha Matthews posted here about the copyright-swiping terms and conditions imposed in Scholastic's annual Art & Writing Awards, the group says it will no longer demand legal ownership of youngsters' submissions.

Scholastic's competition is a marquee annual event celebrating the creative work of schoolchildren, but its rules assign the company copyright ownership of entries forever. This would allow Scholastic to reuse and profit from the work without the creators' permission--and prevent the creator from stopping them or doing likewise.

Now the company is planning a revision to its rules so that it can use the work, but the kids still own it. Though Scholastic hasn't said exactly what form the new terms and conditions will take, similar events require only a license to use the work. https://twitter.com/RumbleComics/status/964528736602386432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Nicole Brown writes:

Matthews wrote about the copyright issue for a school assignment and got it published in February on the blog Boing Boing.

Shortly after, the alliance reached out to her dad, letting him know they would review its terms and conditions before next year’s contest.

“The Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that administers the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, is currently exploring a revision to the program’s terms & conditions for participants,” McEnerney confirmed.

Photo: Scott Matthews