Scholarly Communication - Open Access: Fair Use

Fair Use is, according to Stanford University Libraries' information on fair use, "any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and "transformative" purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Such uses can be done without permission from the copyright owner." 

There are four factors in determining Fair Use:

• The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
• The nature of the copyrighted work
• The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
• The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. 

Because fair use is an interpretive aspect of copyright law, these links can help assist in determining what is fair use.

• The Fair Use Checklist - Developed by Kenneth D. Crews (Columbia University) and Dwayne K. Buttler (University of Louisville) and available from the Copyright Advisory Office at Columbia University.
• The Process for Fair Use Reasoning Worksheet - Developed by Renee Hobbs from the Media Education Lab at the University of Rhode Island.
• Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries - Association of Research Libraries, in partnership with the Center for Social Media and the Washington College of Law at American University. 
• Measuring Fair Use: The Four Factors - Stanford University Libraries

The Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act, or TEACH Act: Allows the performance and display of copyrighted works for online distance education purposes, which only applies to performances of nondramatic literary works or musical works in their entirety and limited portions of other works, provided:

• The instructor is the one who decides to use the work; and
• A lawfully acquired copy of the work is used; and
• The work is relevant to the course; and
• Access is limited to students enrolled in the course; and
• Authorized users do not distribute the work to others; and
• The work is taken down at the end of the semester; and
• No one interferes with technological measures used by copyright owners of the work to prevent such retention or unauthorized further dissemination.

Instructors of University courses may transmit entire musical works, but may not transmit entire dramatic works (operas, plays).

Here are some suggestions for faculty and students about copyright from the University of Maryland.

For Teaching Faculty:

1) Use articles and materials to which the University has electronic licensing rights.

2) Use works in the public domain.

3) Create and use your own works.

4) Using the four factors of fair use, conduct individual fair use analyses for every work you wish to reproduce and distribute to a class and record your analysis.

5) Obtain permission from copyright owners.

For Students:

1) Copy only so much of a work as you need to complete your academic project.

2) Limit distribution to the class and professor.