The DMCA is an act which was instituted to protect the original author of a work. It was reformed in 1988 & includes educational issues, such as the requirements of developing & maintaining distance education courses.

Literary Works- books, periodicals, programs, film, computer disks, etc. Musical Works- songs, musical plays, operas Dramatic Works- dramatic readings, plays

Graphics & Sculptures- photos, art, maps, globes, models, diagrams Movies & Audiovisual Works- slides, filmstrips, videos Sound Recordings- records, tapes, computer disks Choreography & Pantomime

Web pages Architectural Drawings Poetry Databases

Facts & Ideas- concepts & truths can’t be owned by anyone For example, a biography about Huey Lewis is copyrighted, but the events he lived through & the facts of his life are not.

Titles Public Domain means it belongs to the public as a whole, such as works with an expired copyright or published over 75 years ago. Short Phrases Copies of Public Domain Works

If it’s public domain such as granted for parodies If you’re granted permission If there’s a legal exception- If it’s fair use What is fair use, you ask?

Teachers are allowed to copy material for educational use, but 4 “Fair Use Factors” must be considered when using copyrighted material.

Purpose of use- allowed to copy & use selections of copyrighted material if made spontaneously and temporarily. Nature of work- copying paragraphs is allowed, copying chapters is not.

Proportion of material used- copying short sections which don’t reflect the “essence” of the total work is allowed. Effect on marketability- copying is allowed if it doesn’t affect the sale of the copyrighted work.

Choosing to ignore established school policies may result in the teacher receiving no legal support from their educational institution. If a teacher is found guilty of willful infringement, stiff fines & penalties may be incurred.

Distance education teachers may not own their self- authored distance ed courses. The distance ed teacher’s educational institution may claim ownership of the course.

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A Harvard University Law Professor decided to videotape his lectures and sell them to another online institution.

What was Harvard’s response to the professor? A.Allow the professor the sale of his lecture. B.B.Sue the professor.

Harvard decided to sue its professor on the grounds that he violated school policy which required him to ask permission to “teach” at another university. Back to Scenarios

Harvard decided to sue its professor on the grounds that he violated school policy which required him to ask permission to “teach” at another university.

A teacher prepares a lesson and copies some pages from an instructional book, which she uses semester after semester.

The teacher was found liable for copying the instructional book without permission. How many pages did she copy? A.A.2 out of 20 pages B.B.11 out of 24 pages

The factors of fair use require that the copies be temporary, not semester to semester. The teacher also used almost a half of the work, instead of a small section, for her lesson, violating factors 2 & 3.23 Back to Scenarios

The factors of fair use require that the copies be temporary, not semester to semester. The teacher also used almost a half of the work, instead of a small section, for her lesson, violating factors 2 & 3.23

A teacher, who knows about the copyright law policy at his school, decides to use copyrighted works on his school website without waiting for permission from the copyright owners.

This teacher was found guilty by a judge of copyright infringement and was ordered to pay damages. How much was he fined? A.A.$100 B.B.$1,000 C.C.$100,000

Willful infringement, Back to Scenarios which means that one knows what they are doing is wrong, but decides to do it anyway, can cost the guilty $100,000 per offense.

Back to Scenarios Willful infringement, which means that one knows what they are doing is wrong, but decides to do it anyway, can cost the guilty $100,000 per offense.

A teacher, who knows nothing about the copyright law policy at her school, decides to use copyrighted works in her classroom, not realizing she needs permission from the copyright owners.

Could this teacher be found guilty of copyright infringement if legal action was brought against her? A.A.Yes B.B.No

Back to Scenarios Ignorance of the law is no excuse Copyright infringement has occurred even if this teacher doesn’t know she’s done something illegal & may face penalties & fines in the future.

Back to Scenarios Ignorance of the law is no excuse Copyright infringement has occurred even if this teacher doesn’t know she’s done something illegal & may have to face penalties & fines.

You post an educational webquest for your distance education course & place the copyright symbol on each page. You then find out that someone has copied your webquest and placed it on their own site, without giving you credit.

After unsuccessfully trying to resolve your dispute with the person who blatantly refuses to give you credit for your webquest, you decide to sue. Will the judge award you punitive damages? A.A.Yes B.B.No

Back to Scenarios Although copyright is automatic as soon as your site is tangible, you can’t sue someone for punitive damages for copyright infringement until your work is registered with the Copyright Office.

Back to Scenarios Although copyright is automatic as soon as your site is tangible, you can’t sue someone for punitive damages for copyright infringement until your work is registered with the Copyright Office.

A teacher has built a website and added links to outside resources. One of the sites he’s linked to contacts him and asks him to remove the link to their site.

Can the teacher refuse to remove the link on the grounds that he created his website and has a right to link to anything he wants? A.A.Yes B.B.No

Resources Linking to another site requires that sites’ agreement, though it’s not usually enforced or insisted upon by the web community at large. If contacted to remove a link, simply remove the link.

Linking to another site requires that sites’ agreement, though it’s not usually enforced or insisted upon by the web community at large. If contacted to remove a link, simply remove the link. Resources

Purpose of use- allowed to copy & use selections of copyrighted material if made spontaneously and temporarily. Nature of work- copying paragraphs is allowed, copying chapters is not. Back to Scenarios

Proportion of material used- copying short sections which don’t reflect the “essence” of the total work is allowed. Effect on marketability- copying is allowed if it doesn’t affect the sale of the copyrighted work. Back to Scenarios

Copyright Symbol- Scenario I Singer, K. (2001). A new frontier. Matrix, Scenario II & III Newsome, C. (1997). A teacher’s guide to fair use and copyright: Modeling honesty and resourcefulness. Fair use and Copyright for Teachers. Retrieved March 20, 2002 from the World Wide Web: Clipart Camera Operator-

Scenario V More Info Copyright Website- Crash Course in Copyright by University of Texas- tindx.htm tindx.htm

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