Copyright provides the creators of original works of authorship with a limited set of exclusive rights to copy, distribute, and perform their works. The law attempts to balance the private interests of copyright owners with the public interest and is intended, in the words of the Constitution: "...to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for a limited Time to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
Though having undergone major revisions, notably in 1909 and 1976, the law endures today and continues to apply to any tangible medium of expression. Many of the law's provisions are limited in certain circumstances and the educational milieu is one of the most confusing areas where copyright can be applied.
The advance of technology offers many opportunities to create, distribute and control copyright protected works. Taking advantage of these opportunities sometimes places the scholarly and education community at odds with commercial interests. Copyright law attempts to balance these competing interests and to assure responsible copyright behavior. Therefore, it is critical that all members of the educational community stay informed about their rights and responsibilities.
Exclusive Rights
Copyright law gives copyright owners the exclusive right to:
Reproduce a work
Prepare derivative works based on the original
Distribute copies
Perform the work
Display the work
To perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission, in the case of sound recordings
Essentially, it is illegal for someone other than the copyright owner to exercise these rights, but they are not unlimited. Sections 107 through 122, in chapter 1 of the U.S. Copyright Law, describe limitations on these rights that reveal copyright protections to be a set of grants and controls over original works and not exclusive after all.
Works Protected by Copyright
literary works
musical works, including accompanying words
dramatic works, including accompanying music
pantomimes and choreographic works
pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
motion pictures and other audiovisual works
sound recordings
architectural work
Works Not Protected by Copyright
None of the following types of expressions are eligible for copyright protection.
titles, names, short phrases and slogans; familiar symbols or designs, mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, mere listings of ingredients or contents
ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a description, explanation, or illustration
certain works produced by government employees
works consisting entirely of information that is common property and containing no original authorship
Assignment and Registration
It is not necessary to publish a work or to register a work with the Copyright Office. Copyright protection subsists in an original work of authorship from the time it is created and fixed in tangible form. Registration is not a requirement and can be made anytime within the life of the copyright. There are advantages to timely registration:
Registration is required to file an infringement suit in a court.
Registration within 3 months of publication or prior to any infringement will make damages and attorney's fees available to the copyright owner in any court action.
Copyright becomes the property of the author who created the original work and in the case of works created by employees within the scope of their employment the employer is considered to be the author. Section 101 of the copyright law defines such work as, "Work made for hire".
Length of Copyright Term
Copyright duration is complex under U.S. Copyright law. In general, published works created on or after January 1, 1978 are protected for life of the author plus 70 years. In the case of joint authorship copyright protection subsists for 70 years after the death of the last surviving author.
Unpublished works and works created before January 1, 1978 present a variety of conditions and circumstances that must be met to qualify for copyright protection. Peter B. Hirtle at Cornell University has created a useful and comprehensive table detailing copyright duration and the public domain.
Copyright Notices
Works published on or after March 1, 1989 do not require a copyright notice to appear on the work. Works published before March 1, 1989 should bear a copyright notice.
Using a copyright notice is the responsibility of the copyright owner and does not require registration with the Copyright Office.
Exceptions and Limitations
Chapter 1 of the U.S. Copryright Law lists the exclusive rights of copyright holders and the exceptions and limitations to those rights. Section 106 of chapter 1 lists the six exclusive rights copyright owners have regarding their work. The next 15 sections of chapter 1 in the law set forth many exceptions and limitations on those rights. Four of these exceptions are commonly at play in education:
Section 107 Fair Use - Probably the most well known exception yet most confusing and controversial. Fair use was codified in the Copyright Act of 1976 and recognizes the public's interest in using copyrighted works to create new works.
Section 108 Library Exception - Working in harmony with exceptions like fair use library exceptions assure libraries serving the public and scholarly research communities will have access to copyrighted works for their non-commercial activities.
Section 109 Right of First Sale - This exception makes it possible for anyone to redistribute their purchased copy of a copyrighted work by resale, lending or donation. It is one of the foundations on which libraries stand ready to lend materials in their collections to their user communities.
Section 110 (2) TEACH Act- The Technology Education and Copyright Harmonization Act is an important revision to section 110 of the Copyright Act of 1976 which assures that new technology based education, e.g. distance education using the internet, may apply the principles and provisions of fair use in their curricula.
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research. If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of fair use, that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.
