Dear all, Over the last few years, the ECS has been exploring ways to put content online for membership to access. One of the challenges, aside from the need for website space, has been the issue of copyright. Given the sheer number of authors involved in abstract books and proceedings since the inception of the ECS (including several that have since passes away), there is no truly sufficient way to address this issue. However, at the last AGM in Malta, the membership approved a copyright statement and following process: 1) All future submissions will require corresponding authors to check a box saying that they, on behalf of all authors, accept the copyright agreement that give the ECS unlimited rights to reproduce the material intact in any format, while leaving all rights of use and re-use in any form to the authors. This will allow the ECS to produce hard copies and/or put the material onto their website in pdf format. 2) All future Special Publication submissions will require organisers to submit copies of signed agreements from the corresponding authors of each authored chapter, to allow the ECS to produce hard copies and/or put the material onto their website in pdf format. 3) In addition to notification to the assembled ECS membership at the Malta AGM, additional notification of the intent to apply the same statement retroactively to all previously submitted material (abstracts, proceedings, and special publication material) will be made on ECS Talk, Marmam and the Society for Conservation Biology Marine Section lists. This represents an attempt to reach as many authors as possible. If any author does not accept this retroactive agreement, they are asked to contact the ECS editor (currently myself) to request that their specified contribution(s) be excluded. The ECS will then find a means to accommodate this. 4) In further addition to this notification, details of this process will be placed onto the ECS website so that any author can at any time henceforth contact the ECS Editor to express their wish to opt out of the retroactive agreement. The ECS will then find a means to accommodate this. Accordingly, I am writing to notify the past and present membership of the ECS about the copyright statement, the intent to retroactively apply it to all previously submitted material and the opportunity to opt out of the agreement. The agreement can currently be found at: http://www.europeancetaceansociety.eu/sites/default/files/ECS_Copyright.pdf Please send me an email if you have any questions. Many thanks and best regards, Andrew -- Andrew Wright, Ph.D. ECS Editor 2011-2015