1. Copyright Basics Michael Lorenzen, Ed.D Associate Dean for Public Services Western Washington University Shortened and Adapted from his Shortened and Adapted from his Copyright Basics PowerPointCopyright Basics PowerPoint

2. FAQs  What is Copyright?  Why Are Works Copyright?  What About Music and Videos?  What Can Be Copyrighted?  How Do I Get A Copyright?  How Long Does Copyright Last?  What Is Public Domain?  Public Domain Examples  What is Fair Use?

3. What is Copyright?   Copyright protects peoples’ work from being stolen.   It allows authors, musicians, artists, etc. to make sure their work is credited to them.   And to (hopefully) make a profit from their work.

4. Why Are Works Copyrighted?   It prevents others from taking their work for free.   It prevents people from altering the work without permission.   It also allows your original work to be protected – no matter what your age.

5. What About Music and Videos?  As said earlier, many earn their income from selling songs and videos. To take them or use them, without permission, is a violation of copyright law and could send you to prison.  And yes, that includes YouTube videos and ripping music from CDs.  A small segment or portion used is okay. The whole thing is not.

6. What Can Be Copyrighted?  Literary Works  Musical Works  Dramatic Works  Choreographic Work  Pictorial, Graphic, and Sculptural Works  Motion Pictures and AV  Sound Recordings  Architectural Works

7. How Do I A Copyright?  It is automatic. When you create a work, it is automatically copyrighted.  There is no need to include a copyright notice. (©, 2003). However, it is a good idea to do so.  The copyright is in force when the work is “fixed” which includes saving to disk or writing it on paper.

8. How Long Does Copyright Last?  A copyright last for life plus 70 years for an individual’s work for anything on or after 1978. The simple answer…

9. What Is Public Domain?  Anything in the public domain is useable by anyone in any way that they want. No one owns it.  Everything published before 1923 is in the public domain.  US federal works are in the public domain.  Authors can choose to put work in the public domain by including a notice that the item is in the public domain.

10. Public Domain Examples  Project Gutenberg (many sites including places classics in the public domain online which are scanned by volunteers.  Project Gutenberg (many sites including http://promo.net/pg/) places classics in the public domain online which are scanned by volunteers. http://promo.net/pg/  The US Federal Government search engine FirstGov ( indexes public domain government info.  The US Federal Government search engine FirstGov (http://www.firstgov.gov/) indexes public domain government info.http://www.firstgov.gov/

11. What is Fair Use?  Use of material for criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research.  There are limitations - including considering the purpose, nature, amount substantiality (will it change or impact the work’s future), and the effect of the use on potential value of work (will it change how people view the work or its potential to earn money.)