Copyright Training

Sara Benson, Copyright Librarian

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Agenda

• Copyright Basics + Exceptions & Fair Use
• Fair Use Exercise

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You write, but do you own a copyright?

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Copyright Basics

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• For works produced today, protection is automatic once a creative work is fixed

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• The bundle of copyrights lasts a long time:
• Life of the author plus 70 years

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I own a copyright, but others do, too?

• Right. This begs the question . . . Can you use others’ work in your work?

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• The answer is generally yes, but there are different ways to get there . . .

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Using Others’ Work

• Here are some avenues for legally using others’ work in your thesis:
1. Public Domain
2. Creative Commons Licensing
3. Copyright Exceptions
4. Fair Use
5. Asking for (and receiving) permission from the copyright owner

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Public Domain

• Published in the US pre-1928 in the public domain!

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Types of CC Licenses

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Face-to-Face Teaching Exception

• Any work!
• Performance or Display (not copying)
• Must be face-to-face
• For A/V work, must be from a legal copy

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• Not Netflix! Why not?

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FAIR USE 17 USC Section 107

Preamble to Section 107: “the fair use of a copyrighted work . . . for purposes such as criticism, comment . . . teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.”

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Fair Use Factors

“In determining . . . fair use the factors to be considered shall include—

(1) purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is . . . for nonprofit educational purposes;

(2) nature of the copyrighted work;

(3) amount and substantiality of the portion used . . . ; and

(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.”

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Factor 1: �Purpose & Character of the Use

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Commercial versus Educational Use

Factor 2:�Nature of the Work

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unpublished/creative versus published/factual

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Factor 3:�Amount/Substantiality Used

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entire book copied/heart of work copied versus small amount copied

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Factor 4:�Effect on Market for Original Work

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Replaces marketplace for original work versus substantially different than original work

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Factor 1+ �Transformative Use

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A transformative use is one that alters the original work "with new expression, meaning or message . . .."  Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, 510 U.S. 569, 579 (1994). 

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Transformative Use Example

1. Purpose of the original posters:

Advertise Concerts

2. Purpose of posters embedded in book:

Historical Context

Moral of the story?

• You can use your fair use rights even if you asked for permission and someone told you “no.”

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Transformative Use?

The HathiTrust digital library inputs entire digital copies of books and other materials. For © works, the general public cannot see the entire book, but can search for how many times a specific “term” is used in that work.

Transformative use?

1. Yes
2. No

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Transformative Use Example

1. Purpose of original materials:

Communication

2. Purpose of HathiTrust

term numbers:

Research

Moral of the fair use story?

• Even using the entire work and making multiple copies of the work can constitute a transformative fair use.

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Transformative Use?

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Let’s Practice!

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