Background: The evolution in digital technologies has had an enormous impact on traditional copyright notions. Works in digital form have uniform characteristics and these works can be copied, distributed and stored with ease. Objectives: The focus of this article was how to attain a balance between the need to promote access to works and therefore knowledge and learning, on the one hand, and the protection of the interests of copyright holders, on the other. Method: Technological protection measures (TPMs) are applied to copyright works in digital form to curb infringement. The authors explore the extent to which TPMs impact on access the knowledge and learning. Results: The findings of this article suggest a need for possible countermeasures in promoting knowledge and literacy through legislative reform that address the needs of creators and users in developing communities. Conclusion: The authors conclude that TPMs may hinder data literacy, access to works, teaching and learning, particularly in developing communities. For example, recent attempts to revise South African copyright law have not attained a balanced approach.

中文翻译：

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数字版权法律和政策对获取知识和学习的影响

背景：数字技术的发展对传统版权概念产生了巨大影响。数字形式的作品具有统一的特征，可以轻松地复制，分发和存储这些作品。目标：本文的重点是如何在一方面促进对作品的获取以及因此对知识和学习的需求与另一方面对版权持有人利益的保护之间取得平衡。方法：将技术保护措施（TPM）应用于数字形式的版权作品，以遏制侵权。作者探讨了TPM对获取知识和学习的影响程度。结果：本文的调查结果表明，需要通过立法改革来解决发展中社区创造者和使用者的需求，以采取可能的对策来促进知识和扫盲。结论：作者得出的结论是，TPM可能会阻碍数据素养，作品获取，教学和学习的障碍，特别是在发展中社区。例如，最近修改南非版权法的尝试并未取得平衡。