Copyright & Fair Use
*The following are guidelines set by federal law and
we must abide by them. 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 specific 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.
A work doesn't need to be published or registered in order for
it to be protected by copyright law. The absence of a copyright
insignia on a published work doesn't indicate that it is unprotected.
Since March 1, 1989 copyright notice has not been a requirement
for copyright protection.
Fair Use is a much disputed area of copyright law. The same fair
use is frequently seen from opposing views at the same time and
in the same place. While nonprofit educational uses are generally
favored, a nonprofit educational purpose doesn't automatically
make any use a fair use! There are no legally set guidelines to
determine fair use. Some committees may have attempted to set
some but no court or congress has ever read them into law. Fair
use must be determined according to the circumstances that exist
in each situation using the equal application and consideration
of four factors. They are:
The purpose or character of the use
The nature of the copyrighted work being used
The amount and substantiality of the work being used
The effect of the use on the market for or value of the original
Generally it is easier to suppose Fair Use if the nature of the
work being used is factual in nature. The copyright statute doesn't
give numbers or percentages but the greater the percentage of the
work you use, the smaller the chance that it will fall under Fair
Use. This part of the decision-making of Fair Use also concerns
the 'heart of the matter', even if you use a very small portion
of the work, it may not be considered Fair Use if you've used the
very 'heart of the matter'. The effect on the market is a double
edged sword and really can swing either way. Sometimes if
the courts are seeing a harm to the marketplace, they are seeing
what could happen if your type of use became widespread! It can't
be said enough that to determine Fair Use, the four guidelines must
be considered together and equally. Faculty members and
staff need to be aware that there are definite rules and restrictions
on how photocopies of journal articles and other ILL materials
are used at Skidmore. If we became aware of an improper useage,
we would have to terminate that request or delivery of materials.
The most obvious implication of copyright and interlibrary loan
would be charges that resulted from the copyright fees Skidmore
is required to pay each year.
If you have further questions regarding Copyright & Fair
Use, you may contact the Interlibrary Loan Office or for more
information use this link for copyright
policy. |
