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INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 3880
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 6187
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 0447
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 5017
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ISLAMABAD 003254 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ETRD EFIN EINV KIPR PGOV PK
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN'S NATIONAL BOOK FOUNDATION 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: This cable contains an action request, see 
paragraph 9.  The National Book Foundation (NBF) has the mandate of 
providing affordable textbooks, reference books and research books 
to university students as well as promoting the growth of a domestic 
book industry.  This mandate has developed into a successful 
non-profit government enterprise which promotes Pakistani authors, 
literacy, information dissemination and the domestic printing and 
publishing industry.  Amendments to Pakistan's copyright laws 
provide for compulsory licensing of textbooks to a government entity 
on a not-for-profit basis, allowing the NBF to translate and reprint 
textbooks of foreign origins without obtaining reprint rights or 
paying license fees or royalties.  The NBF paid royalties to foreign 
publishers from its inception until 1984 when it stopped paying fees 
due to a severe shortage of funds.  The NBF now says that it would 
like to restart a royalty payment program for foreign books that it 
has reprinted in Pakistan, but they also say they are encountering 
some resistance from book publishers.  In view of the NBF's 
activities promoting literacy and education, Post believes that it 
would be advisable to find an equitable solution rather than attempt 
to curtail their activities.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (U) On October 7, Econoff met with NBF Managing Director Javed 
Akhtar and Secretary Aslam Rao to discuss the NBF's reprinting of 
foreign books without permission or royalties and to better 
understand NBF's work in Pakistan in general.  In response to 
requests from the Department of Commerce (DOC) to explore the 
possibility of a digital video conference (DVC) between the American 
Association of Publishers (AAP) and the NBF, Econoff visited NBF to 
pursue the issue of compulsory licensing, to discuss a meeting 
between NBF and the American Association of Publishers (AAP), and to 
seek the NBF's views on copyright in general in comparison to the 
book publishing industry's views. 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
PAYING THEIR DUES 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶3. (SBU) Javed Akhtar told Econoff that he is very much in favor of 
"doing the right thing" and restarting royalty payments to foreign 
publishers for books reprinted in Pakistan.  They were also very 
interested in potential co-publication arrangements in cooperation 
with foreign publishers.  Aslam Rao said that he had been contacting 
foreign publishers regarding reprint rights and license fees, but 
had had a very low response rate.  He said he hoped to meet with 
representatives of the Publishers Association of the U.K., the 
American Association of Publishers (AAP) and the International 
Publisher's Association (IPA) during an upcoming visit to the 
Frankfurt Book Fair in October.  They were of the opinion that the 
NBF actually had a damping effect on book piracy because few 
booksellers could afford to undercut the NBF's low prices.  (Note: 
Industry has previously reported that NBF sold its product at or 
above the legitimate price.)  Both assured Econoff that they would 
be open to audits of their printing runs by third parties and that 
they maintained internal checks to prevent unauthorized print 
overruns.   In addition, they said, the NBF is empowered to take 
action against illegal copies of their own books, an added benefit 
in a co-publication arrangement.  The NBF receives requests for 
reprints of foreign books directly from a university, and it then 
polls other universities to determine the actual demand for that 
book and thus the number of copies needed.  The NBF is part of 
Pakistan's Intellectual Property Task Force, which includes the 
Intellectual Property Organization (IPO), the Federal Investigation 
Agency (FIA) and Pakistan Customs. 
 
¶4. (SBU) When asked to offer an opinion on why publishers in the 
United States are not interested in granting print licenses to NBF, 
Rao and Akhtar told EconOff that the publishers think that Pakistan 
is a small market that can be catered to from India.  Rao and Akhtar 
highlighted the rollercoaster political relations between the two 
countries and stressed that the arrangement cannot be sustainable 
until the two countries sort out their bigger issues.  Pakistan 
today is a country of 170 million people with 45 percent of the 
population aged between 18-24 (i.e. school and university age), and 
not a negligible market.  They suggested that perhaps the US 
publishers could form another region comprising Pakistan, Sri Lanka, 
Nepal and the Central Asian countries.  Printing and publishing 
partnerships could also be created in Pakistan where the cost of 
printing is lower than India. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - 
HISTORY OF THE NBF 
- - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶5. (U) Aslam Rao provided a detailed history of the NBF and its 
mandate in Pakistan.  The NBF was founded in 1972 with the purpose 
 
ISLAMABAD 00003254  002 OF 003 
 
 
of providing affordable textbooks to Pakistani students, after 
shortages of textbooks led to unrest on university campuses.  At 
that time, all textbooks used in Pakistan came from outside the 
country and were beyond the means of most Pakistani students to 
afford.  The 1972 devaluation of Pakistan's currency raised prices 
by over 100 percent when the exchange rate went from PKR 4 per 
dollar to PKR 9.9 to a dollar.  One of the NBF's primary functions 
was to provide textbooks and academic books through local 
production.  An amendment in 1973 to the Copyright Ordinance of 1962 
allowed for compulsory licensing of textbooks.  In 2000, the 
Copyright Ordinance was amended again and the section regarding 
compulsory licensing of textbooks was revised to specify that it 
could only be done by a government entity and on a non-profit basis. 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) Nonetheless, from its foundation until 1984, the NBF paid a 
royalty of two percent of the foreign listed price to foreign 
publishers.  According to Rao, the NBF has never had a funding grant 
from the GOP, and Ali alleged that the corruption during Zulfikar 
Ali Bhutto's tenure as Prime Minister ate through what capital the 
NBF did have.  Thus in 1984 it was decided that, ostensibly to 
reduce the NBF's costs, it was not necessary to pay royalties since 
Pakistani law authorized the reprints without them.  From the 
mid-nineties on, after Pakistan joined the WTO and the Trade Related 
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement came into 
effect for WTO members, the NBF began to experience increasing 
pressure from foreign publishers and their local agents regarding 
royalty payments. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - 
A SUCCESSFUL ENTERPRISE 
- - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶7. (U) The NBF earned PKR 250 million (USD 3.2 million) in 
FY2007-08, primarily from the sale of textbooks.  According to Rao, 
it is the biggest single distribution channel for books in Pakistan, 
with twenty-two outlets, including their main headquarters in 
Islamabad, provincial headquarters, branch offices and stand-alone 
bookstores.  It has worked with Pakistani authors to develop its own 
line of primary and secondary school textbooks, approved by the 
Ministry of Education.  In addition, the NBF runs several literacy 
promotion programs, including Braille books which it distributes 
free of charge around the world, translation of children's books 
into Urdu, promotion of children's books authors and a very popular 
reader's club which enables members to buy books for half price. 
Akhtar and Rao highlighted Wah Cantt (a town 35 kilometers from 
Islamabad), which has a 99 percent literacy rate, and Islamabad 
Capital Territory which also has a very high literacy rate, as areas 
where the NBF's programs and textbooks have been particularly 
successful. 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
ALTERNATIVE VIEW 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶8. (SBU) Ameena Saiyid of the Oxford University Press, for one 
industry example, remains steadfastly hostile to the National Book 
Foundation's activities saying, "They should not be printing books. 
They should promote book sales and publishers and not be in 
competition with them."  This view lends some credence to Rao's 
claim that foreign book publishers have been unresponsive to NBF 
offers to pay license fees.  The American Association of Publishers 
has offered the view that their priority in Pakistan is law 
enforcement and public awareness issues before discussing print 
licensing arrangements or joint ventures.  The Pakistan Publishers 
and Booksellers Association, a domestic publishing trade 
organization, has collaborated successfully with the NBF to organize 
international book fairs in Lahore and Karachi. 
 
¶9. (U) Action Request: Post has learned that DOC and the U.S. Trade 
Representative (USTR) are no longer interested in pursuing a Digital 
Video Conference (DVC) between the stakeholders, but Post requests 
that DOC and USTR facilitate a meeting between the NBF and the AAP 
at the Frankfurt International Book Fair from October 15 to 19 where 
the NBF is maintaining a booth. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Comment: While it is possible that Akhtar and Rao were 
being disingenuous and self-congratulatory about the NBF's 
achievements, the offer to begin paying royalties or print license 
fees appears legitimate.  While the payment of licensing fees does 
not address the issue of compulsory licensing as allowed in 
Pakistani law, it can be seen as an effort to improve the situation 
and mend fences.  In view of the NBF's activities to support and 
promote Pakistani authors, literacy and education, Post does not 
believe it is advisable to advocate any action that would curtail 
 
ISLAMABAD 00003254  003 OF 003 
 
 
these efforts.  Post recommends working toward a collaborative 
solution between the NBF and the international publishing community, 
which could include joint publishing ventures and partnerships.  End 
comment. 
 
 
FEIERSTEIN