COMMUNICATIONS

Aspects of our research center are of architectural interest. Many visitors are especially struck by the library’s vaulted ceiling. It is not uncommon for magazines to want to carry an image of it in their glossy picture pages, and we have had requests to use the library for TV dramas.

Recently we have started charging a media usage fee for such requests. We made the decision in order to raise some income; times are hard. We were also keen to simplify the procedures for seeking permission.

These were rather tough decisions. I wrote in an earlier book of mine about a concert hall in Kitayama, a northern area of Kyoto, which was making money charging magazines a fee for using its image. I noted at the time that “They have a nerve; it’s a public building!” That same me is now charging magazines a fee for using images of our own institute.

I now apologize to the Kitayama concert hall for my earlier criticism.