Once of the most formidable of tasks as an IR manager is the copyright clearance of content. It is a chore that often falls squarely on our shoulders.When you first start out, it is often overwhelming and confusing to figure out how exactly to go about securing copyright for published scholarly content. For new repository managers, there are several well-known and other not-so-well-known resources out there for your disposal.
SHERPA/RoMEO
http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo.php
OAKList
http://www.oaklist.qut.edu.au/
WorldCat Copyright Evidence Registry (beta) – Useful for discovering the copyright status of books
http://www.worldcat.org/copyrightevidence/registry
Despite these resources, you will quickly find gaps in the information, as not every publisher you will encounter will be listed on these resources. I suggest combing publisher websites for the author agreements, contacting publishers directly and recording their policy information for future use.
