Copyright

How to stay out of trouble and what you NEED to know!

Mojgan Askari
Dr. Wilson
HBU
What is copyright?

 Copyright: the exclusive legal right, given to an originator or an

assignee to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or
musical material, and to authorize others to do the same.

 Copyright infringement: the use of works protected by copyright law

without permission, infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the
copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce, distribute, display
or perform the protected work, or to make derivative works.
How to Avoid Copyright
Infringement…
 Use Caution If It's Not Your Original Work. ...

 Read, Read, Read. ...

 Don't Believe the Urban Legends. ... How to Avoid Copyright

Infringement

 Look for Fair Use.

What is the penalty for copyright
infringement?
 Infringer pays the actual dollar amount of damages and profits.
 The law provides a range from $200 to $150,000 for each work
infringed.
 Infringer pays for all attorneys fees and court costs.
 The Court can issue an injunction to stop the infringing acts.
 The Court can impound the illegal works.
 The infringer can go to jail.
What is “fair use”?

 Fair use is a legal doctrine that promotes freedom of expression by

permitting the unlicensed use of copyright-protected works in
certain circumstances.
What are the conditions for
deciding fair use?

 A fair use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited

and “transformative” purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize,
or parody a copyrighted work
Things that need to be considered
when using multimedia?
 Public domain such as federal info is owned by everyone and not
copyright protected. Same applies to material published before
December 31, 1922

 Copyright in media industries. Copyright protects written, theatrical,

musical and artistic works. It can also be applied to film, book
layouts, sound recordings and broadcasts. You can copyright
software and databases as well, since they are classed as literary
works.
 Source: https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/copyright-media-industries
What are the conditions for using
someone else’s words?

 Ask for it!

 Contact the copyright owner directly if you know who it is!

 Request the Copyright Office to conduct a research if you are

unable to or don’t know the copyright owners information
What are the conditions for using
another’s musical score?
 To use samples of music by other authors in your work, ensure that
permission is obtained to utilize work before an attempt to publish or
sell the work. Similarly, if you use loops or samples available via
sample collections or such; ensure that they are licensed as free to
use, or obtain permission first.
 What are the guidelines for using
film in the classroom?
“Guidelines for Off-Air Recording of Broadcast Programming for educational Purposes”
 Only programs broadcast to the general public may be taped, meaning no CABLE
TV
 A classroom teacher who wants a particular program taped should ask the school to
tape it.
 The tape may be shown only during the first ten consecutive school days after it is
made, and only in a classroom or similar place devoted to instruction.
 A limited number of copies may be made from each off-air recording
 The tape may not be altered in any way
 After the ten-day classroom use period expires, the tape may be used only for
evaluation — that is, to determine whether it should be bought or licensed for
permanent inclusion in the teaching curriculum. Not later than 45 calendar days after
the tape was made, it must be destroyed.
What if you want play something
that was recorded off of the TV to
use in the classroom…What are the
rules here?
 Television programs are protected by federal copyright laws. This
means that a TV program can legally be taped and shown to
students only with the copyright owner’s permission.
 However… under thje ”fair use” rule, someone other than the
copyright owner can make limited use of a copyrighted work
without permission for purposes such as teaching, research,
scholarship, criticism, parody and news reporting.
How can you get permission to use
items in your classroom?
 If you wish to pursue permission for your use, you will need to identify
and locate the copyright holder

 Ask for permission

 And stay within any guidelines given

When items are posted to a
website what should the creator be
careful to consider?
 A copyright notice is advisable. A proper notice generally requires
the symbol "©" or the word "Copyright," together with the copyright
holder's name and the year of first publication
 This designation should appear on or near the title page in printed
works, and on an early screen in electronic works.
Sources
https://www.lib.purdue.edu/uco/CopyrightBasics/penalties.html

https://fairuse.stanford.edu/law/us-code/u-s-copyright-act/subject-matter-and-scope-
of-copyright/#101

https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html

https://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/protect/p07_music_copyright

https://ogc.harvard.edu/pages/copyright-and-fair-use

http://www.knowyourcopyrights.org/storage/documents/kycrfaq.pdf

https://fairuse.stanford.edu/overview/faqs/videotaping/