1. Copyright Issues in
Higher Education
Joe Hardenbrook
Library Instruction Coordinator, Research/Instruction Librarian &
Educational Technologist, Millikin University
jhardenbrook@millikin.edu
Amanda Pippitt
Library Access Services Coordinator, Research/Instruction Librarian &
Archivist, Millikin University
apippitt@millikin.edu

2. Copyright Issues in Higher Ed
 Who handles copyright?
 Important laws and legislation
 Scenarios involving copyright
 Resources for additional investigation

3. Copyright: Who’s in charge?
 Who handles copyright at your institution?
 Information Technology, Library, different offices, no
one?!?!
 What policies do you have in place? On your
website?
 How do you handle copyright permissions?
 How are faculty made aware of these policies?
 Does anyone monitor CMS for copyright
infringements or violations?

4. Copyright: What’s protected?
X Domain Names
Scribbles Graffiti
Books
X Simple Phrases X Titles
Doodles Movies Articles Music X Ideas
Photographs X Facts Sound Recordings
Ballets Software Plays X U.S. gov’t works
Sculpture X Slogans
Architecture
Paintings
Websites Pantomimes X Names
Source: Copyright Management Center. (2006). Copyright Quickguide. Indiana University-Purdue University at
Indianapolis. Retrieved 7 September 2006, from http://www.copyright.iupui.edu/quickguide.htm.

5. Laws & Legislation
 Copyright mentioned in the constitution
 U.S. Copyright Act 1790, 1909, 1976
 Fair use (1976)
 Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension
Act (1998)
 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (1998)
 TEACH Act (2002) – Distance ed. issues

6. What makes something
copyrighted?
 U.S. Copyright Act, Section 102(a):
 Original work of authorship
 Fixed in a tangible medium of expression
now known or later developed
Source: U.S. Copyright Office (2006). Copyright Law of the United States and Related Laws Contained in Title
17 of the United States Code. Retrieved 7 September 2006, from http://www.copyright.gov/title17/.

7. When/How is something
copyrighted?
 Automatic…when you create something
original that is “fixed,” it’s copyrighted!
 Not required to register it with the
Copyright Office.
 Don’t have to use the ©.
 Assume that almost every work is
protected by copyright.
Source: Crews, K. (2000). Copyright Essentials for Librarians and Educators. Chicago: American Library
Association.

8. How long is copyright?
 Generally, works today are life of author
+ 70 years.
 Thanks, Sonny!
 When do works pass into the public domain?
 Flowchart of Copyright Length

9. Fair Use
 Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act
 4 Factors
 Purpose – non-profit, educational use
 Nature – published work, factual, fiction
 Amount – small quantity, entire work used
 Effect – significant effect on market?
Repeated or long term use?

10. Digital Millennium Copyright Act
 Controversial? Too focused on copyright
holder?
 “Anticircumvention” – illegal to disrupt
technological measures designed to
protect copyright.
 Section 512 – Privacy Issues – copyright
owners can file a subpoena against ISPs
seeking identities of users.

11. TEACH Act
 Technology, Education and Copyright
Harmonization Act
 Guidelines on the transmission of digital
materials to distance ed students
 Not as broad as “fair use”
 Technological requirements – limited
access, limited time, restricted
dissemination
 Sample Checklist (No. Carolina St. Univ.)

12. Scenario #1: Question
 Professor Smith reads an article on The
Chronicle of Higher Education website
about faculty salaries.
 She copies and pastes the article into
her e-mail and forwards to the entire
faculty.
 Copyright violation?

13. Scenario #1: Answer…Yes
 She copied the article and sent it out
without copyright owner’s permission.
 Instead, send out small excerpt or a link
to the article.
 Or see if the institution has a site
license with The Chronicle.
 Example:
http://chronicle.com/help/copyright.htm

14. Scenario #2: Question
 Student group on campus has a “Movie
Night” and shows some DVDs.
 Acceptable / Not Acceptable???

15. Scenario #2: Answer…Need
more info
 Did the student group show a copy of the
movie with “public performance rights”?…
if so, then OK!
 If not, copyright was violated.
 To qualify for “fair use” it must be in a
regularly scheduled class, no admission
charge, during class time, with instructor
& enrolled students ONLY.

16. Scenario #3: Question
 Professor Jones wants to post a journal
article in Blackboard.
 Is this OK?

17. Scenario #3: Answer…It Depends
 Continued use may affect the market
 However, it’s being used for educational
purposes. Access restricted to students.
 Alternative #1: use an electronic reserve
system if available.
 Alternative #2: Library’s databases may
have access. Link to the persistent URL.
Source: Copyright Management Center. (2006). Common Scenarios of Fair Use Issues: Posting Materials on Course
Management Systems. Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis. Retrieved 7 September 2006, from
http://www.copyright.iupui.edu/fuscenarios.htm.

18. Scenario #4: Question
 Professor Smith goes to Blockbuster to
rent Pride & Prejudice to show in his
English Lit class.
 Is this a violation of copyright?

19. Scenario #4: Answer…It’s OK!
 Why?
 Qualifies under Section 110 of the U.S.
Copyright Act – face to face teaching in the
classroom, regularly scheduled class, only enrolled
students, DVD was a lawful copy, etc…
Source: Russell, C. (Ed.). (2004). Complete Copyright: An Everyday Guide for Librarians. Chicago:
American Library Association.

20. Scenario #5: Question
 Professor Jones is teaching a online
class, “Media & Society,” using a CMS.
 She wants to show a clip from the local
television news about a murder.
 Can she do this without violating
copyright/TEACH Act?

21. Scenario #5: Answer….Hmm?
 A short clip as opposed to the entire broadcast
tips it to fair use.
 It’s a factual news story, not a dramatic work…
again, in favor of fair use.
 If the TV station offers copies for purchase, this
would be the preferred route.
 Clip should only be displayed for a limited time,
only to enrolled students. – TEACH Act.
 Converting analog to digital is OK—as long as no
digital copy is available at the institution, and it
it’s limited to the appropriate amount.

22. Scenario #6: Question
 Student in your class finds an image on
the Web that she wants to use in a web
design project.
 The image is copyrighted, but she
manipulates it with Photoshop.
 Is this a violation of copyright?

23. Scenario #6: Answer…Maybe?
 There are no explicit guidelines on what
types of changes she would have to
make to consider it “original.”
 People do this all the time.
 Does that make it OK?
Source: Russell, C. (Ed.). (2004). Complete Copyright: An Everyday Guide for Librarians. Chicago:
American Library Association.

24. Resources
 United States Copyright Office
 http://www.copyright.gov/
 Copyright Clearance Center
 http://www.copyright.com/
 IUPUI Copyright Management Center
 http://www.copyright.iupui.edu/
 NCSU Scholarly Communication Center
 http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scc/main.html

25. Copyright Issues in Higher Ed
 This presentation is not copyrighted and
may be freely distributed with
attribution given to the authors.