The government has launched a two-month public consultation exercise on proposed subsidiary legislation under the Copyright Ordinance.

Suggested changes include a limit on how much of a library item can be copied by a user, with 10 percent of the work in question mooted as a reasonable amount.

"The current Copyright Libraries Regulations use a word-counting approach. Ten percent of the content is only a reference. We would like the new subsidiary legislation to provide a guideline for a reasonable proportion of copying, instead of a strict definition," Assistant Director of Intellectual Property Sandra Hui told RTHK on Friday.

Another change would involve requiring library users to sign a declaration stating that copies made are only for research or study purposes.

The public have until April 15 to submit their views on the proposed legislation.