Albanese Government acts on audio and e-book lending rights promise

Updating Australia’s lending rights schemes to include digital content will see increased payments flow directly to local writers, illustrators and publishers.

Originally promised as part of the new National Cultural Policy, Revive, in January, the Albanese Government has honoured its promise to modernise Australia’s lending rights scheme.

The investment of $12.9 million in order to extend the Public Lending Right (PLR) and Educational Lending Right (ELR) Schemes, so that digital content such as e-books and audiobooks are included, will result in increased payments flowing directly to local writers, illustrators, publishers and translators.

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Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, a Melbourne Fringe Festival Living Legend, and was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in 2020. In 2021 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association. Most recently, Richard received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts