The owner of copyright has the exclusive right to do and to authorize any of the following:
- To reproduce
- to prepare (new) derivative works
- to distribute copies
- to publicly perform
- to publicly display the copyrighted work.
Copyright protection covers both published and unpublished works.
There are limited exceptions to these exclusive rights that do allow you to copy some amount of copyright work without having to obtain permission. The main exception relevant to academic study is one that allows "fair use."
Introduction
In using copyright works (e.g. journal articles, books, etc.) for study or research you are expected to observe certain legal and ethical guidelines, especially to abide by the law of copyright. When you copy works or parts of works using photocopiers, scanners, the Windows "cut and paste" function, and such activities or when you output works or parts of them by printing, e-mail, saving to a disk, you must do so within the framework set by the law of copyright. Any work is accorded copyright protection when it is "fixed in a tangible medium, (Section 101)" (such as written on a piece of paper, recorded on disk, or tape, etc.). Copyright applies to all types of works encountered in academic study. Works in any medium - printed or electronic - are protected. This guide is intended to point out important aspects of copyright and how it affects your use of copyright works.
What is Copyright?
Copyright is a form of protection provided by the laws of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) to the authors of "original works of authorship." Copyrightable works of authorship include, among other categories, books, articles and other written works; musical and dramatic works; pictures, films, videos, sculptures and other works of art; computer software; and electronic chip designs. Copyright protection begins as soon as a work is created. Copyright lasts for a period of years, which varies according to the type of work. The fact that a previously published work is out of print does not affect its copyright. Certain rights are given to copyright owners to control the copying of their work. These rights are subject to limitations and allow copying under certain conditions.
Fair Use
Fair use is the legal principal that provides certain limitations on the exclusive right of copyright holders. The fair use section is found in Section 107 of the Copyright Law. Fair use allows for the use of copyrighted materials, within certain limitations, for purposes such as "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research." The law does not clearly delineate the boundaries of fair use. Instead, the law provides four factors, each of which must be weighed in order to determine fair use: