Copyright Law

Presented by Laura Heins

What is Copyright Law?

• A law that protects your original work and gives you the exclusive rights to it.

• Ensures that you receive credit for your work.• Includes any original work, such as text, art,

music, etc.

Warning! Penalties for Copyright Infringement

• It is a felony!• Copyright owner can file a lawsuit in federal

court– Issue a restraining order to prevent any more

violations– Recover any money damages and any profits made

by the infringer– Recover attorney fees– The court can choose to award sums of up to

$250,000.00!

Fair Use: A Way Around Copyright Laws

The public can freely use

portions of copyright

materials for the purposes of

commentary & criticism

parody

news reportingresearcheducational purposes

Conditions for Deciding Fair Use

1

•The purpose and character of your use

2

•The nature of the copyrighted work

3

•The amount and substantiality of the portion taken

4

•The effect of the use upon the potential market

The Purpose & Character of Your Use

• Are you transforming the original work by adding new expression or meaning?

• Did you add value to the original work by creating new information, new aesthetics, new insights, or new understandings?

The Nature of the Copyrighted Work

• You are more likely to have a case for fair use if you copy:– Factual works– Published works

The Amount & Substantiality of the Portion Taken

• The less you take the better• Do not take the most memorable or important

part of the work• If you are copying material for a parody, you

are able to borrow much more

The Effect of the Use Upon the Potential Market

• Will your use deprive the owner of income?• Will your use undermine a new or potential

market for the copyrighted work?

Using Multimedia in the Classroom

• You can create multimedia works for educational purposes– Can be used for up to two years

• Only two copies of a multimedia project can be made• Portion Limitations– 10% or 1,000 words of a copyrighted text– 10% but not more than 30 seconds of music & lyrics– Up to 5 images by the same artist or photographer– 10% or 2,500 fields or cell entries from a database or data

table

Conditions for Using Copyrighted TextA chapter from a book

An article from a periodical or newspaper

A short story, short essay, or short poem

A chart, graph, diagram, drawing, cartoon, or picture

Teachers can make 1 copy

Conditions for Using Copyrighted Text

• Make only 1 copy per student• Put the copyright notice on each copy• DO NOT:– Copy more than one poem, article, story, essay or

two excerpts from the same author– Copy more than three from the same collective

work or periodical volume– Copy materials that were intended for educational

use

Conditions for Using Copyrighted Musical Scores

• DO NOT:– Take more than 10% of the whole work– Distort the fundamental character of the work or

alter the lyrics– Copy music to create anthologies or compilations– Copy music intended to be consumable– Copy music for the purpose of performance– Exclude the copyright notice

Conditions for Using Copyrighted Musical Scores

You can make a copy of

copyrighted music for

educational purposes

If the copyrighted music is out of print you can request permission to reproduce it from the music publisher.

Students can make a recording of a performance for evaluation or rehearsal purposes

Guidelines for Using Film

• Teachers can show a film in the classroom if:– It is shown for educational purposes– It is shown in a nonprofit educational institution– It is a lawful copy of the film

You cannot show a film for

entertainment purposes!

Can You Tape a TV Program for Classroom Use?

• Yes, under fair use!• Rules:– The tape can only be shown for the first 10

consecutive school days after it is made• After this it can be used for evaluation

– A limited number of copies can be made– The tape cannot be altered

How Can You Get Permission to Use Copyrighted Material?

• Contact the copyright owner directly• Ask the Copyright Office to search its records

to find out who the copyright owner is

Posting Items to a Website

Make sure that you do not post any copyrighted

items on your website

This would be considered an

infringement of copyright laws!

Why You Should Obey Copyright Laws

• It is a felony to infringe on copyright laws• Serve as a good example for your students• Show respect for the original works of others• Give credit to owners for their work

Resources

• http://www.copyright.gov/• http://fairuse.stanford.edu/• http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.

html• http://www.copyright.com/