About the Authors Coalition of America
The Authors Coalition of America LLC (ACA) is twenty-three American organizations, representing over 85,000 authors, artists and photographers, united to receive foreign reprographic royalties and direct them to benefit every American creator.
OUR HISTORY
ACA is formed by ten founding Member Associations. Its goal–to repatriate and distribute the creator’s share of foreign non-title-specific reprographic royalties for American works photocopied abroad. Previously, these collective funds had sent to an American licensing agency, the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), and used for copyright enforcement.
After several years of negotiations, ACA and CCC release a joint statement to the international community of reprographic rights organizations (RROs) announcing an alliance. The RROs are requested to send all non-title-specific reprographic royalties that had been held while ACA and CCC established their agreement, and to continue to send these funds in the future.
ACA takes on payment of certain foreign title-specific royalties, bringing money home to American creators.
ACA accepts the first payment of non-title-specific Public Lending Right funds from Reprobel of Belgium.
ACA administers the payment of Canadian class action copyright settlement funds to named American authors.
TODAY
ACA’s engagement continues to expand to meet the current foreign reprographics environment. We, and several of our Member Associations, are members of IFRRO, the International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organizations, assuring that American creators have a voice overseas. ACA remains focused on our mission to act for the benefit of every American author and creator.
Currently, we receive funds via agreement with CCC from the following reprographic rights organizations:
- Kopinor (Norway)
- VG Wort (Germany)
- Literar Mechana (Austria)
- Bonus Presskopia (Sweden)
- Stichting Reprorect (the Netherlands)
- Pro Litteris (Switzerland)
- Kopiosto (Finland)
- Reprobel (Belgium)
- Cedro (Spain)
- Fjolis (Iceland)
- Jamcopy (Jamaica)
- Osdel (Greece)
- SIAE (Italy)
- CopyDan (Denmark-visual materials only)
- CAL (Australia-visual materials only)
ACA Executive Committee
Alicia Calzada
National Press Photographers of America (NPPA)
Deputy General Counsel
Alicia Calzada is Deputy General Counsel for the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA). She has been an attorney practicing First Amendment and copyright law since 2011. Alicia is a relentless advocate for photojournalists and other media professionals, and promotes their interests through litigation, legislative advocacy and educational initiatives. From 2005-2006, she served as president of NPPA and is the founder and chair of its Advocacy Committee. In 2013, NPPA established the Alicia Calzada First Amendment Award, an annual award that recognizes individuals who advocate for First Amendment freedoms. Before becoming an attorney, Alicia was a professional photojournalist working both as a staffer and an independent photographer.
Cheryl Davis
Authors Guild (AG)
General Counsel
Cheryl L. Davis is General Counsel of the Authors Guild, where she oversees the organization’s legal affairs, including its in-house corporate affairs, government relations and policy initiatives, and legal services program. She is a graduate of Princeton and Columbia Universities. She holds leadership positions in the following legal organizations: ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law (Literary Works Committee Chair), ABA Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Forum (Arts and Museums Vice Chair), New York State Bar Association, Entertainment Arts and Sports Law Section (Diversity Committee Co-Chair), Dramatists Guild Legal Defense Fund (Board member).
Larry Goldbetter
National Writers Union (NWU)
President
Larry Goldbetter has been President of NWU since 2009. Before that he was a freelance labor consultant, serving local unions in mass transit, health care, and the auto industry mainly in Washington, DC, Chicago, and the Bay Area. As a member of the Chicago NWU, he was elected Chicago Chapter Chair and then as 2nd Vice President to the National Executive Board. Larry has been re-elected to the Executive Committee of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ.org). He has “covered the labor beat” both as a participant and as a recorder for decades, having called NY, Detroit and Chicago, home.
Michael Sullivan
Textbook & Academic Authors Association (TAA)
Michael Sullivan is the author or co-author of over ninety mathematics textbooks and an Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at Chicago State University. Elected to the Textbook & Academic Authors Council of Fellows in 1999, he is active in TAA to this day. Mike has been involved with the Authors Coalition since its inception and was instrumental in crafting the agreement between ACA and CCC that resulted in ACA receiving the authors’ share of foreign non-title specific reprographic collections. Mike holds a Ph.D. in mathematics from the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Dorien Kelly Davis
Authors Coalition of America
Administrator
Dorien Kelly Davis joined ACA in 2011 and became its Administrator in 2014. She holds an AB in English Literature from the University of Michigan and a JD from the Michigan State University College of Law. She practiced commercial law for a decade before selling her first novel. A New York Times bestselling author, she has had over a dozen works of popular fiction published. She finds her duties for ACA to be the perfect blend of her prior two careers.