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Fair Use for Education

What is Fair Use?

§ 107. Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include —

 (1) the purpose and character of the use, including

   whether such use is of a commercial nature or

   is for nonprofit educational purposes;

(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;

(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion

   used in relation to the copyrighted work as a

   whole; and

(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market

   for or value of the copyrighted work.         

The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.  

One more time (in English!)

• Purpose and character of use,  Nonprofit or educational
• The nature of the copyrighted work
• The amount and sustainability compared to the whole
• Effect upon the market or value of the work
   

What are my limits?

• Time
• Portion
• Copying and Distribution 
   

Time.

• Educators may use their educational multimedia projects created for educational purposes under Section 2 of these guidelines for teaching courses, for a period of up to two years after the first instructional use with a class. Use beyond that time period, even for educational purposes, requires permission for each copyrighted portion incorporated in the production.

   

Portions.

• Motion Media

  • 10% or 3 minutes, whichever is less.

• Text Material

  • 10% or 1000 words,  whichever is less.

• Music, Lyrics, and Music Video

  • 10% or 3 minutes, whichever is less.

• Illustrations and Photographs

  • Can use entire image but not entire work.

  • 10% or 15 images, whichever is less.

• Numerical Sets

  • 10% or 2500 fields, whichever is less. 

Distribution.

• Only a limited number of copies, including the original, may be made of an educator's educational multimedia project. For all of the uses permitted by Section 3, there may be no more than two use copies only one of which may be placed on reserve as described in Section 3.2.3.

• An additional copy may be made for preservation purposes but may only be used or copied to replace a use copy that has been lost, stolen, or damaged. In the case of a jointly created educational multimedia project, each principal creator may retain one copy but only for the purposes described in Sections 3.3 and 3.4 for educators and Section 3.1 for students.  

   

   

When do I need to ask?

• Anytime you go over portion limits.

• Anytime you go beyond time limitations.

• Anytime you have questions in the duplication of materials.

• Anytime there is a question in the distribution of material.

• Anytime you think your job may be in danger!

Significant Research by TWU Instructional Designer

A look was taken at obtaining permission on Copyrighted works for different types of media for a online course, and for different types of copyrighted materials. Here are the steps and the amount of time taken to obtain the needed permissions:

• Calvin and Hobbes syndicated cartoon:  A search of the Internet found that gocomics.com was the official site for Calvin and Hobbes. Using “contact us” hyperlink, an email request was sent asking to use a single Calvin and Hobbes cartoon for a presentation, and to use the cartoon in an online course. Within 10 days a letter was received from the copyright owner granting use of the strip, and outlining how many strips could be used and the limits of distribution. 

• Delta Wedding by Eudora Welty:  Examination of the novel by Welty showed the publisher name.  A single paragraph and some artwork that appeared in the novel appeared useful for instruction purposes. The publisher was easily located on the Internet with a page that specifically dealt with copyright permissions. A request for use was emailed to the publisher and a response email was received within a week’s time, giving permission to use the works as I needed. 

• Computer Literacy Basics, a Text Book:  This textbook was used in an online course.  The publisher information was found within the textbook, and the publisher's website was easily located online.  The "Contact Us" option on their website allowed for submission of a request use a paragraph and an illustrated chart in an online course.  Again, within a week’s time a letter was received from the publisher with the publisher’s permission to use the information requested.

• National Geographic – Taboo:  An instructor had purchased the series of videos for the program Taboo from National Geographic for use in her F2F course and wanted to use portion for her online course. A visit to National Geographic's website showed that National Geographic had the program archived in full length and available for free on their website. 

• Wallace and Grommet - Curse of the Were-Rabbit:  The official website of Wallace and Grommet had a specific page for requesting permission to use any Wallace and Grommet related material. A request was emailed to them on 11 April 2008, but a reply is still forthcoming.  

   

  From Our Lawyers: Our disclaimer is that you may not have the same response time as we experienced, so plan early and have a good backup if the permission does not come through in time.

   

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