The Association of American Publishers (AAP) recently named Maria A. Pallante as President and CEO.

Pallante is the former United States Register of Copyrights, a position she held from 2011-2016. During her tenure, she administered an increasingly complex legal system of programs, practices, and regulations and assisted executive branch agencies with trade, treaties and litigation.

Pallante was a key advisor to the U.S. Congress, working closely with lawmakers to evaluate the efficacy and balance of the Copyright Act and to address issues at the intersection of law, business, and technology.

Her experience is extensive as indicated by her prior positions in the U.S. Copyright Office: Deputy General Counsel and Associate Register and Director of Policy and International Affairs. From 1999 to 2007, she was intellectual property counsel and director of licensing and branding for the worldwide network of Guggenheim Museums, headquartered in New York. In addition, she worked briefly for the Authors Guild and National Writers Union, respectively, and was in private practice in Washington, DC.

This appointment is an exciting time for the AAP as they represent about four hundred member organizations that include major commercial, digital learning and education, and professional publishers alongside independents, non-profits, university presses and scholarly societies.

The protection of intellectual property rights and worldwide copyright enforcement are a key part of this new position’s responsibilities.

Melody K. Smith

Sponsored by Access Innovations, the world leader in thesaurus, ontology, and taxonomy creation and metadata application.