Faculty Research Resources: Copyright

Copyright is a type of intellectual property law that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression. - U.S. Copyright Office

Copyright applied to both published AND unpublished works. The laws provide the author exclusive rights to:

• reproduce their work
• distribute copies
• perform a work publicly
• prepare derivative works
• See (section 106 , title 17, U.S. Code)

Copyright laws apply to material available on the internet, even if you're able to access and "copy" it from the page. 

• Check for posted copyright limitations.
• If none are available, this does not indicate that material is free for reuse. 

Public Domain is when material is no longer under intellectual property protection or if it failed to meet the requirements for protection. 

This material may be used freely, without the permission. Be aware that:

• Works can have layers of copyright protections, so while most of a material is public domain, an element within the work is still protected.
• Works can be in the public domain, but then are modified. The original is still free to use, the modification is not. 
• Some copyrighted works are protected by trademark law.
• Copyright varies by country of publication.
• It is in best practice to cite material from the public domain. 

The creative commons is a set of standardized licenses authors can apply to their work to provide permissions on how to use and share their work. 

 BY: credit must be given to the creator.

 SA: Adaptations must be shared under the same terms.

 NC: Only noncommercial uses of the work are permitted.

 ND: No derivatives or adaptations of the work are permitted.

 CC0: Creator gives up the right to their work and places it within the public domain.

"Open Access is the free, immediate, online availability of research articles coupled with the rights to use these articles fully in the digital environment." - Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC)

Check the copyright permissions on open access works. Free access does not always mean free use.

Allows for limited reuse of someone else's work without infringing on their copyright.

To help you know if your use is fair use, there are four factors to answer or analyze"

• Purpose and Character of Your Use
• Nature of Copyrighted Work
• The amount of the portion taken
• Effect of Use on the Potential Market