Digital Right Management and Accessibility of Libraries Electronic Resources for Blind and Visually Impaired Users

Abstract

In this digital era, where digital information is available in various formats, Digital Right Management has emerged as a great technology used by content owners to safeguard their intellectual property digitally. Digital rights management restricts the use of copyrighted digital works from unauthorised access. Although Digital Right Management appears to protect writers’ copyrights, it limits the copyright freedom of blind and visually impaired users who depend on accessibility features. The study aims to discuss and highlight the impact of Digital Right Management on the accessibility of libraries’ electronic resources for BVI users. Furthermore, it discusses how complex Digital Rights Management violates the fair-use rights of BVI users by making it impossible for them to access electronic resources. This review article outlines the key research findings on Digital Right Management hindrances encountered by blind and visually impaired users in accessing electronic resources. The results root in the literature surveyed discloses that the majority of libraries throughout the world are falling behind in delivering efficient access to electronic resources for BVI users. Libraries have a variety of obstacles to the accessibility of electronic content, including Digital Right Management challenges, license constraints, website design limitations, accessibility issues, and compatibility issues with assistive software. To overcome some of these barriers, librarians should review the implications of Digital Right Management for accessibility. Moreover, librarians must be knowledgeable about the numerous forms of visual impairments, including these users in accessibility studies, and consider the assistive technology they use. The article will review the literature on the following topics: find out how accessible electronic resources in libraries are for blind or visually impaired users; identify existing accessibility challenges arising from Digital Right Management technologies that impede access to electronic resources by blind or visually impaired users, and identify the challenges that they are facing.