The content of this guide is for informational purposes only. While the content is about copyright law, it does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice.
SCENARIO: An instructor or student wishes to incorporate portions of copyrighted materials in a multimedia project for use as part of a course.
GUIDELINE: This is a fair use as long as each portion meets the fair use criteria. Criterion Three, "the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole," is generally the most difficult one to determine. The following guidelines are often used to meet Criterion Three:
Note: These guidelines for Criterion Three are not intended to limit the types of copying permitted under the standards of fair use which are stated in Section 107 of the Copyright Revision Bill. However, there may be exceptions for longer portions if it is determined that a longer portion is necessary to support a lesson. If a faculty member would like to use more than 25% of an entire work, he/she must first consult his or her subject librarian.
SOURCE: U.S. Code, Title 17, Section 107 (Limitation on exclusive rights: Fair use)
SCENARIO: An instructor wishes to store or transmit a multimedia project containing copyrighted materials on the Web for the students in his/her course.
GUIDELINE: This is fair use as long as the instructor has done the following:
SOURCE: U.S. Code, Title 17, Section 107 (Limitation on exclusive rights: Fair use)
SCENARIO: An instructor wishes to distribute a multimedia product containing copyrighted materials to persons not enrolled in the course or to another institution.
GUIDELINE: This would not be fair use, since, even for educational uses, educators and students must seek individual permissions for all copyrighted works incorporated in their personally created educational multimedia projects before replicating or distributing beyond their course.
SOURCE: U.S. Code, Title 17, Section 107 (Limitation on exclusive rights: Fair use)
SCENARIO: An instructor wishes to demonstrate a multimedia project at in an educational setting outside the classroom or at a professional conference.
GUIDELINE: Demonstrating a multimedia project in an educational setting or at a professional conference would be a fair use since it does not involve replicating or distributing the materials.
SOURCE: U.S. Code, Title 17, Section 107 (Limitation on exclusive rights: Fair use)