Irish Poetry in Translation on the Web: Clarification

It has come to the attention of Ireland Literature Exchange that misinformation has circulated in certain territories of the world in relation to ILE's position regarding the posting/publishing of Irish poetry in translation on the internet (websites, blogs, etc).

We wish to clarify Ireland Literature Exchange's position on this matter.

• It is a breach of international copyright law to place an entire poem on the internet without prior permission of the rights holder(s), i.e., the poet and/or their publisher (depending on their contract).
• It is also a breach of copyright law to place an entire translation of a poem on the internet without prior permission of the rights holder(s) of the translation, i.e., the translator and/or their publisher (depending on their contract).
• If a translator wishes to post his/her own translation of a work on the web, he/she must acquire permission to do so from the rights holder(s) of the original work, prior to posting.

We would like to highlight ILE's continued support and encouragement for the worldwide promotion of Irish poetry. ILE recognizes that, through their use of web-based platforms, translators can often play a key role in bringing new work to the attention of both publishers and general readers alike.

Ireland Literature Exchange can only endorse such activities when they are fully compliant with international copyright law.

Sinéad Mac Aodha
Director