Presented by Jane K.
Terpstra
Instructional Designer
J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
New Horizons Conference
Alexandria, VA
April 4, 1998
© 1998
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Presented by Jane K.
Terpstra New Horizons Conference |
II. Current Fair Use Guidelines
III. VCCS Guidelines Regarding Intellectual Property
V. Recommended Process for Obtaining Permission to Use Copyrighted Works
I. Defining Terms
IA. What is a copyright?
A copyright is the set of exclusive legal rights authors have over their works for a limited period of time. In the United States, these rights are principally defined by the federal Copyright Statute. These rights include copying the works (including parts of the works), making derivative works, distributing the works, and performing the works (this means showing a movie or playing an audio recording, as well as performing a dramatic work). Currently, the author's rights begin when a work is created. Copyrighted works are not limited to those that bear a copyright notice. As a result of changes in copyright law, works published since March 1, 1989 need not bear a copyright notice to be protected under the federal statute.
Works governed by the copyright law include…
Copyrighted works are protected regardless of the medium in which they are created or reproduced; thus, copyright extends to digital works and works transformed into a digital format. Copyright policy does not apply to…
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IB. What is Fair Use? Fair use is a legal (or commonly accepted) principle that defines the limitations on the exclusive rights of copyright holders. In the Copyright Act of 1976, four factors are used to determine fair use in all guidelines:
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IC. What are Portion, Time, and Distribution Limitations? Fair use primarily specifies portion limitations, or portions of copyrighted works which may be used without obtaining copyright clearance from copyright holders. These currently include whichever is less of the following…
| With fair use of copyrighted materials, there are also specific time and distribution limitations on the use of the copyrighted works. For multimedia projects, the time limit for use of copyrighted works is two years after the first instructional use. No more than two copies of the multimedia project may be made. One of these may be placed on reserve. One copy may be retained by the creator for his/her portfolio and for peer conference presentations. Students may be given access either by signing out the reserve copy or via a computer network if a password or PIN are required to limit access. For distance education, transmission must be over a secure system with technological limitations to access. Performance of an entire copyrighted work may be transmitted only once. Receive sites may copy the class transmission and retain the copy for up to 15 consecutive class days. Access to the copy must be handled in a controlled environment. Digitized images in their entirety, including thumbnail images, may be accessed on the institution’s secure electronic network for classroom use, after-class review, or directed study provided there are technological limitations such as a password or PIN restricting access. Use is restricted to the semester the course is taught. Educational institutions may digitize large analog image collections they hold during a transition period of seven years from December 31, 1996. However, during this time, permission to digitize, retain, and reuse the images must be sought.
ID. What is the Process of Clearing Rights? Clearing rights is the process by which permission is obtained from the copyright holder for use of copyrighted materials in other works. This is usually the original author, photographer, artist, or performer, etc. However, if this person has entered into a formal contract transferring the rights, then permission must be obtained from this source (e.g. publisher, gallery, museum, corporation, etc.). If the copyright is held by multiple parties, permission must be obtained from all who hold the copyright. Written permission clearly specifying the conditions of use should be obtained and kept on file. If the copyright holder is unknown, a thoroughly documented search for the original source is required.
IE. What is Individual/Institutional Liability? Copyright violation makes the individual and, in many cases, the institution liable for damages. The current penalty for unauthorized use is up to $100,000 per single act of willful infringement plus legal costs.
IF. What is Intellectual Property? Intellectual property includes the following…
| Intellectual property rights determine ownership and responsibilities regarding works produced by an employee and/or a student.
II. Current Fair Use Guidelines Visit the following Internet web sites for these current fair use guidelines: IIA. Fair Use of Copyrighted Materials
| IIB. Fair Use Guidelines for Educational Multimedia
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IIC. Multimedia Works
IID. Educational Fair Use Proposals for Distance Learning
| IIE. Educational Fair Use Proposals for Digital Images
| IIF. Using Materials from the Internet
| IIG. VCCS Policy Manual
| IIH. Intellectual Property and the National Information Infrastructure (NII)
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III. VCCS Guidelines Regarding Intellectual Property The VCCS Policy on intellectual property states that, unless a separate written agreement or waiver is executed by an authorized officer of a college or the VCCS, ownership interest is claimed by the VCCS in any intellectual property produced by a VCCS employee when produced as a result of an assigned duty or with substantial use of college resources, facilities, or funds. Unless there is an agreement otherwise, the creator owns all dissertations, theses, and classroom instructional materials created at the creator’s inspiration when produced as the result of routine teaching duties and do not involve substantial use of college resources. Unless there is an agreement otherwise, the creator owns all literary works prepared as a result of the creator’s inspiration unless the creator was hired, assigned, or directed to create the literary work or substantial use of college resources was utilized. Unless there is an agreement otherwise, materials produced by a student as part of course requirements making only incidental use of colleges resources belongs to the creator. All rights in intellectual properties created or developed through the use of external funds administrated by a college shall belong to the college, unless waived in writing by the college president. The college reserves the right to make agreements with sponsoring organizations in the interest of the college and the public.
IV. Current Controversy Surrounding Copyright Laws, Fair Use Guidelines, and Intellectual Property Rights Much has been written and discussed regarding difficulties interpreting copyright laws, possible need to expand copyright laws, difficulties following fair use guidelines, and fairness of intellectual property rights. Visit these Internet web sites to review some of these: The CONFU Digital Image and Multimedia Guidelines: The Consequences for Libraries and Educators
| Copyright Considerations for Faculty-Authored Multimedia Instructional Materials
| A Review of the Conference on Fair Use and Proposed Guidelines
| Basic Principles for Managing Intellectual Property in the Digital Environment
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V. Recommended Process for Obtaining Permission to Use Copyrighted Works World wide web sites can assist in the process of obtaining copyright permissions. For example, if the work is part of a book or a journal article, the Copyright Clearance Center offers electronic requests with 24 to 36 hour turn-around. Other short-cuts are available for images, periodicals, newspapers, music, movies, and videotapes. Visit this Internet web site for information and links: Getting Permission |
