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COPYRIGHT FAIR USE (Doctrine of Fair Use)
The doctrine of fair use
Under the copyright fair use or the doctrine of fair use, an author may make
limited use of work of another author without asking permission.
Section 107 of the copyright law (Copyright Act of 1976) provides
guidelines as to whether the use of someone else's creative
work constitute copyright fair use, or a violation of copyright fair
use or the doctrine
of 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 in 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.
To determine whether or not the copying of a work constitutes fair use; the factors to be considered shall include:
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the purpose and character of the use, including
whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit
educational purposes;
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the nature of the copyrighted work;
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the amount and substantiality of the portion used
in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
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the effect of the use upon the potential market for
or value of the copyrighted work.
The fact that a work is unpublished shall not
itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon
consideration of all the above factors."
(Taken from section 107 of the copyright law).
The distinction between fair use and
copyright infringement is not very well defined. The copyright law
is silent as to the specific number of words, lines, or notes that
may be taken without permission. Be aware of the fact that even if
you acknowledged the source of the material you copied, it is not
the same as having actually obtained permission from the author or
copyright owner.
Here's a list of activities that courts have
regarded as fair use:
- Criticism and/or review - quoting or excerpting a work in
a review or criticism for purposes of illustration or comment.
- Research involving technical or scholarly work - quoting
in a scholarly or technical work for illustration or
clarification of the author's observations.
- Parody - this means, a spoof or caricature.
Imitating another's work in a comical manner.
- News report - summary of an address or article, with brief
quotations, in a news report.
- Replacing part a damaged copy or work - reproducing a part
of a work to replace a damaged copy.
- Teaching/educational - reproduction of a part of a work to
illustrate a lesson.
- Reproduction of a work in legislative or judicial
proceedings or reports
- incidental or fortuitous (unintentional) reproduction -
accidental reproduction of any creative work in a newsreel or
broadcast, located at the scene of an event being reported.
- Report of the Register of Copyrights
on the General Revision of the U.S. Copyright Law (1961).
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