COPYRIGHT LAW & DIGITAL ARCHIVES

Lolly GasawayJune, 2000

U.S. Constitution, Article I, § 8, clause 8

“The Congress shall have Power...To promote the Progress of Science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.”

COPYRIGHT BASICS

Originality & creativity - § 102(a)

Fixation - § 102(a) Published vs.

unpublished works Registration Deposit

NOTICE OF COPYRIGHT§ 401 (b)

1. © , COPYRIGHT, COPR.

2. Year of first publication

3. Name of copyright holder© 2000

L. GASAWAY

TERM OF COPYRIGHT1909 28 years

+28 years 56 years

1976 Act Section 202 lifePersonal Author +50 years

?

1998 Amendment life+ 70 years ?

SONY BONO © TERM EXTENSION ACT (CTEA)

Signed 10-27-99Basically extended

term of copyright by 20 years - to life + 70

Complies with law of European Union

Constitutional challenge underway

Corporate Authors 95 years after date 1st publication or 120 years after creation, whichever comes first.

WHEN WORKS PASS INTO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

DATE OF WORK PROTECTED FROM TERM .

Created 1-1-78 When work is fixed in Life + 70 years (or, if

or after tangible medium of work of corporate

expression authorship, 95 years

from publication, or 120 years from

creation, whichever is first.

._______________________________________________________________

Revised to reflect 1998 Amendmentshttp://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm

Published beforeNow in public domain None1923

Published 1923-63 When published with 28 years + couldnotice be renewed for 47

so renewed, now in public domain

Published 1964-77 When published with 28 years for first notice term; now automatic

extension of 67 years for second term

Created before 1-1-78, the effective Life + 70 years or1-1-78, but not of the 1976 Act 12- 31-

2002,which-published which eliminated ever is greater common law

copyright

Created before 1-1-78, the effective Life + 70 years or 1-1-78 but date of the Act which12-31-2047,published between eliminated common whichever isthen and law copyright. greater12-31-2002

PROTECTABLE WORKS§ 102(a)

1. Literary works2. Musical works3. Dramatic works4. Pantomimes & choreographic works5. Pictorial, graphic & sculptural works6. Motion picture & other audiovisual works7. Sound recordings8. Architectural works

PUBLIC DOMAIN1. Materials on which the copyright has expired.

2. Materials in which the author never claimed copyright, i.e.,

“dedicatedto the public.”

3. Materials produced by the federal government (§ 105)

RIGHTS OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER

Reproduction Distribution Adaptation Performance Display Digital

transmission of sound recordings

§ 106

FAIR USE§ 107

…“the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies … for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.”

FAIR USE FACTORS

Purpose and character of the use Nature of the copyrighted work

§ 107

Amount & substantiality used Market effect

PHOTOGRAPHS Who owns the copyright?

o Generally photographero Snapshotso Newspaper photos – depends, staff

photographer or freelancer?

Who owns image on the photo? How long does the copyright last? What if it is unpublished? What if it is a public domain photo?

How to obtain permission to use ito Locate photographer/copyright holder or

heirs - asko Archival collections may hold only copy

but not copyrightDifference in owning photo & owning copyright

What does putting it on the web mean?o General publicationo Restricting access may change the

equation

WHAT DOES THE INTERNET DO TO © ?

Nothing! Nothing changes the

underlying copyright concepts New method to infringe (copy)

copyrighted works

Result = mass reproduction

A copy is made when the work is scanned, input or copied to send

Arguably, copy is made by every person who even reads or views the work on the screen

INTERNET PARTICULARS

Copyright still belongs to authors / publishers

No notice requirement

Listserv submissions copyrighted (if original)

Just because something is on the Internet does not mean it is there by permission

o Articles on which you hold copyright

o Someone else’s article

HINT: Specify how item was put there plus any restrictions on use

WORLD WIDE WEBYes, home pages

are copyrighted

o No notice requirement, but is a good idea

o Use of original works is no problem!

Original work

=no problem Does inclusion of

©’d works require permission?

o Texto Photographs,

graphics, etc.

o Motion media

o Music

No problem = equivalent to cross referencesoUnless site is

infringingo“Clean links”

Framing = problem

Logos = big problem; use url

LINKING = CROSS REFERENCE

PROTECTING YOUR WORK What do you own?

o Public domain photos digitized ?No, underlying work is

what’s copyrightedPublic domain = public

domain

o The compilation

Include a copyright notice

Detail any restrictions with that noticeo e.g., no commercial

useo Indicate if

permission was received

Restrict accesso Your choiceo Public funding or

other mission may dictate

ASSESSING THE RISK Age of photo How much has been

done to identify owner Commercial vs.

nonprofit status Chance anyone will

complain Worst case scenario