BY KAY L A W E I D E N B AC H

COPYRIGHT AND FAIR USE

WHAT IS COPYRIGHT?

Copyright- Exclusive rights granted by law to copyright owners for protection of their work.

From: http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk/guide/essential-information-for-copyright-support

COPYRIGHT OWNER’S RIGHTS

“Section 106 of the 1976 Copyright Act generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to do and to authorize others to do the following-• Reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords• Prepare derivative works based upon the work • Distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale

or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending• Perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical,

dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works

• Display the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work

• Perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission”

(Copyright Law of the United States of America, Section 106)

WHAT IS COPYRIGHTED? WHAT’S NOT?

What is copyrighted?If you create it, you own it-• Paintings, photographs, poems, novels, songs,

movies, architectural works, etc.

What is not protected by copyright?Works that are entirely made up information that is common property and has no original authorship-• Titles, names, concepts, calendars, etc.

EXAMPLE OF COPYRIGHT

I am the copyright owner of this picture because I took this picture. I have the rights to reproduce the picture, distribute copies of the work, display the work publicly, etc. However, nobody else has these rights unless I grant them permission.

WHAT IS FAIR USE?

Fair Use- The stated principle of government policy that allows for copyrighted material to be used under specific circumstances without permission from the copyright holder.

From: http://publicdomaingenealogy.com/genealogy/fair-use-genealogy.php

THE FOUR FACTORS OF FAIR USE

1. Purpose and Character

2. Nature of Copyrighted Work

3. Portion and Substantiality

4. Effect on Potential Market

THE FOUR FACTORS OF FAIR USE

Purpose and Character-• Is the purpose for non-profit or educational use? Or

commercial?

• Has the material been transformed?

• Was value added?

Using work that is for the purpose of non-profit or educational use will more likely fall under fair use opposed to a work used for commercial use. Works that have been transformed and have value added to them

will also more likely weigh in favor of fair use.

THE FOUR FACTORS OF FAIR USE

Nature of Copyrighted Work-• Is the work factual?

- Scientific, technical, scholarly • Is the work creative?

-Poems, photographs, fictional works• Fair use does not apply to works that are meant

to be consumed-Workbooks, standardized tests, etc.

Works that are factual are more likely to weigh in favor of fair use opposed to creative works.

THE FOUR FACTORS OF FAIR USE

Portion and Substantiality-• No numerical or percentage limits• The less you take, the more likely your copying

will weigh in favor of fair use• Must be careful about using the “heart of the

work”

Must take in account quantity and quality. Using even a small portion of the “heart of the work” may not fall under fair use.

THE FOUR FACTORS OF FAIR USE

Effect on Potential Market-• Would your use negatively affect the market or

value of the copyrighted work?• Does your use undermine a new or potential

market for the copyrighted work?• Does your use deprive the copyright owner of

income?

If the use is likely to negatively affect the market or value of the copyrighted work and the use deprives the copyright owner of income, then the use is not likely to fall under fair use.

EXAMPLE OF FAIR USE

A music professor who uses this ten second clip to have students analyze the different instruments that are being played weighs in favor of fair use because:1. For educational use 2. A small and unsubstantial portion of the work

was used3. The use of this clip will not negatively affect the

market or value of the work

REFERENCES

Copyright Law of the United States of America, Section 106. Retrieved from http://

www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106.