Copyrights for genealogists

Copyrights for Genealogists

Dick Eastman

Copyright Notice

All copyrightable text and graphics, the selection, arrangement, and presentation of all materials (including information in the public domain), and the overall design of this web page are ©2011 Richard W. Eastman. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to download and print materials from the online version of this presentation for the purpose of viewing, reading, and retaining for reference. Any other copying, distribution, retransmission, or modification of information or materials on this site, whether in electronic or hard copy form, without the express prior written permission of Richard W. Eastman, is strictly prohibited.

Policy Concerning Infringement Claims and Repeat Infringers

Richard W. Eastman will process and investigate proper notices of alleged copyright or other intellectual property infringement related to material in this presentation and will respond appropriately, following the guidelines of the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act and other applicable intellectual property laws. Under appropriate circumstances, Richard W. Eastman will act expeditiously to remove or disable access to the material that is claimed to be infringing or claimed to be the subject of infringing activity. Richard W. Eastman will, following appropriate investigation, terminate or disable access by repeat infringers. Claims of alleged copyright or other intellectual property infringement must be in writing and directed to Richard W. Eastman. Contact information to Receive Notification of Claimed Infringement may be found at http://www.eogn.com.

Disclaimer

The materials available in this presentation are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use of and access to this presentation or any of the web or e-mail links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship between Richard W. Eastman and the user or browser. The author, Richard W. Eastman, is not an attorney and assumes no legal responsibility for the use or misuse of the information above. The opinions expressed in this presentation are the opinions of the author and may not reflect the opinions of any individual attorney.

Any questions?

English translation:

“I am not an attorney”

“Put two lawyers in a room and you will receive at least three opinions.”

- Audrey Collins

• Today’s presentation may be found at:

– http://www.eogn.com/handouts/copyrights

Common copyright myths

Copyright issues in the digital age

What is a copyright?

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The United States' copyright law is based on the U.S. Constitutional provision in Article 1, Section 8 which says that Congress shall have the power, “To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;"


Copyright is international! 164 countries have signed the treaty creating the law. The law is called the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention. This international agreement governing copyright, was first accepted in Berne, Switzerland in 1886.


While the Berne Convention was signed by many countries in 1886, the United States did not accept it until more than 100 years later, on March 1, 1989.


Copyright is a law that gives you ownership over the things you create. Be it a painting, a photograph, a poem or a novel, if you created it, you own it and it’s the copyright law itself that assures that ownership.


The ownership that copyright law grants comes with several rights that you, as the owner, have exclusively. Those rights include the right to:– reproduce the work– prepare derivative works– distribute copies– perform the work– and display the work publicly


Nobody else may copy and distribute works without permission unless they own the copyright or if the work is in the public domain (not covered by copyright).


However, not everything is covered by copyrights.


Copyrights may be re-assigned, such as in “work for hire.”

Moral Rights

Though moral rights are not currently recognized in the United States, they’re a major element of European copyright law and are becoming increasingly important as the Web becomes more globalized.

Moral Rights• As defined by the Berne Convention, the moral

rights of an author are as follows:– The right to claim authorship of the work– The right to object to any distortion,

mutilation or modification of the work– The right to object to any derogatory action

that may damage the author’s honor or reputation


• If you are looking for material to republish, you should not use it without either asking permission or confirming that the work is in the public domain, which means that the copyright has expired and all of the above rights have been forfeited.


• If the work isn’t in the public domain and you don’t have permission to publish a piece, you put yourself in risk of legal action, regardless of your intentions.

– NOTE: There are a few exceptions.

What material is not covered by a copyright?

In the U.S.:• Facts are not protected by copyright

– For instance, statements of names, and dates/places of birth, marriage, death, and other vital records are not covered by U.S. copyright laws.

– Most of your genealogy information probably is not protected by copyright!


Anything published prior to 1923

Anything publishedprior to 1964 with

a copyrightstatement but not renewed 28 years

later


Anything publishedprior to 1964 with

a copyrightstatement but not renewed 28 years

later

Anything publishedprior to 1989 butwithout a copyrightnotice



In the U.S.:Federal court records

State court records

Records abstractions from public domain information

Compilations of information from public domain information (such as telephone books)


In the U.S.:Most information published by the Federal

government, excluding some materials written by government contractors

Reprinted works (as they normally carry the same copyright status as the original works)

What material is covered by a copyright?

Generally speaking, in the U.S., the following, materials created today are protected by copyright, unless otherwise stated:

Materials created by state and local governments

Most any original material created by individuals and by corporations

What material is covered by a copyright?

With a few exceptions, the applicable copyright laws are whatever laws were in effect on the date the material was created.


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• I can use that information as long as I don't charge for it.


• If I attribute where I found it, I can copy it and use it.


• The information was published by a non-profit organization, so I can legally republish it.


• The information has no copyright statement, so I can use it.

– NOTE: This was true prior to 1989 and remains true for material created before 1989.


• I found it on the web so I know it is legal to copy

• Everything on the Web is free.


• Well, everybody does it!



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Two concepts to keep in mind

• Copying protected materials for your own personal use is generally legal

• Copying significant amounts of protected materials and distributing to others is generally illegal

Personal use• Copyrights generally are only an issue

when copying and REDISTRIBUTING TO OTHERS.

• Copying information to your own personal genealogy notes typically is not an issue.

Personal use

Copying part or all of an item protected by copyright laws is generally legal as long as:

1. You obtained the original through legal means

2. The original and the copies you make are used only by you

Personal use

Examples include:

1. Photocopyng articles from newspapers and magazines

2. Copying music to an MP3 player

3. Copying material to a hard drive for backup purposes

Fair Use

• “Fair Use” is a concept that allows for limited copying and republishing

Mixed personal and non-personal use

If you make a copy, you may not legally keep the copy and then give the original to someone else.

Examples include: music, books, newspapers, and most everything else that enjoys copyright protection.

Mixed personal and non-personal use

For instance, I am “downsizing” to a smaller home and am digitizing as many materials as possible in order to reduce storage space.

Here is a picture of my new home:

Question:

May I digitize a genealogy book, keep a copy for my own personal use, and then give the original to a library or to a friend or sell it?




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May I copyright a copy of an old document?

May I obtain a copyright of an old document?

Generally speaking, the answer is “No.”

May I copy and republish public domain data from Ancestry.com or from a CD-ROM database?

Generally speaking, the answer is “No,” although the issue is software licensing, not copyrights.

Can I make editing changes to a document to obtain copyright protection?

Generally speaking, your changes may be subject to copyright protection but not the rest of the document.

If I improve the readability of an original document, may I claim copyright on the result?

Consult an attorney.

May I obtain a copyright on an old document?

Generally speaking, the answer is “No.”

Splogging is a clear violation of copyright

Splogging is a clear violation of copyright

In addition, copying material over the Internet is also a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA).

Enforcing copyrights

Attorneys rarely take a copyright case on a contingency basis.


Copyright actions in court by individuals are rarely successful.


It is also expensive for the violator to obtain legal counsel to defend against a lawsuit.

My Advice:

Copying information from materials that are protected by copyrights for your own personal use is rarely a problem.

My Advice:

Copyright problems usually arise only when you republish copyright protected material.

My Advice:

“Republishing” includes publishing in books, magazines, or on the Web.

My Advice:

“Fair Use” allows for copying of a small amount of material.

Avoid copying a lot of material from any source that is protected by copyrights.

My Advice:

Again, facts are not copyrighted in the U.S.

My Advice:

A conservative approach will avoid many problems.

Education

Copyrights for genealogists