What is fair use?
Copyright law seeks to promote the production and distribution of creative works by conferring property rights on authors. The principle of fair use serves to mediate between these property rights and the constitutional rights of public access and free speech embodied in the First Amendment. Fair use serves an important social function by allowing for the use of parts of creative works for the sake of criticism, commentary, and reporting. To decide whether a use is “fair use” or not, courts consider: • the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit education purposes; • the nature of the copyrighted work; • the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and, • the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.[17 U.S.C. 107(1-4)] The principles of fair use are invoked when the transaction costs associated with gaining authorization from c
The doctrine of Fair Use permits, in limited situations, the use of portions of a copyrighted work without the copyright owner’s permission for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship or research. The four factors that are taken into consideration when making such a determination are: 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; and the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. No one factor can determine a person’s right to use a copyrighted work without acquiring permission. Additionally, there is no set number of words or lines that may be taken without permission. Simply citing the source of the copyrighted material cannot take the place of obtaining permission.
“Fair use”, as provided for in the Copyright Act of 1976 (Title 17 United States Code), is difficult to pin down. Copyright law permits the “fair use” application of copyright protected materials for some educational purposes. Such applications do not require the payment of royalties or the permission of copyright owners, provided that the circumstances of the applications are “fair use” as determined by a consideration of four factors specified in section 107 of the Copyright Act, which states: § 107. Limitations on exclusive rights: “fair use” Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the “fair use” of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular cas
U.S. Copyright law allows for reproduction of portions of published, copyrighted works without requiring permission from the copyright owner under certain limited circumstances. In general, the purposes for that reproduction can be considered “fair “if they are for criticism, comment, teaching, scholarship, or research, and are not for commercial purposes, are limited in terms of amount and substantiality in relation to the whole work, and will not affect the potential market for the use. Generally, the safest course is to obtain permission from the copyright owner. You can learn more at the U.S. Copyright Office Web Site. See also our Terms of Use page. For unpublished materials, archivists apply the “fair use” provision by making unpublished material available to researchers, regardless of copyright ownership, and by allowing for single reproductions to be made for research purposes without requesting permission from copyright holders. Also, use of quotations or reproductions in unpu
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