
An introduction to US copyright
We have created a separate set of pages for use by students at GCUNY. This is because although the priciples of copyright may be the same in the UK and US, the way the law is written and implemented is very different. For example, the US has the idea of "fair use" and the Teach Act which are designed to make life easier for those working in academia. The pages are split into sections to enable you to go directly to the relevant area.
MIT have produced a free online course called an Introduction to copyright law in America. It leads to an ALISON diploma and takes 4-5 hours to complete.
This is a complex subject, so we have structured this section on two levels, the first gives you headline information and guides to help you deal with issues arising in your day to day work. The second goes in to each aspect of copyright in more detail.
Everyday issues:
- What is copyright?
- Copyright and education
- Who owns what?
- Getting permission
- Your rights as a copyright owner
- Using internet material
- Fair use, including the Fair Use Evaluator
- Open access
More detail:
- Joint authors
- Who is an author, and does the author or the employer own the contribution?
- Does the author still own the rights to the work?
- Copyright management, including when you commercialize your work
- Copyright management, including when you don't commercialize your work
- Negotiating with publishers
- Using internet material, liability for posting infringing works and fair use
- Fair use in detail
- Fair use - unprotected works
- Fair use - Digitisation
- The 4 factor fair use test
- The TEACH act
- Getting permission
- Copyright in the library
- University administrative interests in copyright