Spring 2002
Special points of interest:
- Copyright has become more restrictive, especially concerning digital items
- "Fair use" of items to support classroom instruction is still protected
- Applying fair use principles with practical, compliant, solutions will protect copyright users
Inside this issue:
| Licensed Databases & Copyright | 2 |
| Aleph 500 | 2 |
| Copyright Resources | 3 |
| Faculty Activities | 4 |
| Copyright or Copy Wrong? | 5 |
| Notes From The Units | 6 |
| Ask The Librarian | 7 |
| CUNY Copyright Task Force | 7 |
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by Marie Spina "Naperstish" copyright issues of free access protection of intellectual property rights are constand news. Confusion reigns over the "use" versus "fair use" in academic settings and the "free" web with questions like: "Why can't I put a copy of a reserve article on my Blackboard site, but I can put it on reserve in the library?" or "Why can I link to a picture on a website but not legally copy it to my course site?" The Tasini Supreme Court decision concerning copyright brings "use" and "fair use" concerns to the forefront for writers and educators. Researchers were enjoying access to electronic full-text from library subscription services (LEXIS-NEXIS and EBSCOHost) when, seemingly overnight, some full-text materials disappeared after the Supreme Court's ruling in July, 2001. The U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act (1998) expanded creators' rights already protected in the U.S. Constitution. In some cases, especially concerning use of digital or electronic materials, it limits access to information or reuse of information. The area of limitation is of vital interest to academics, who rely on access to information as a basic right and need. The economic rights sought by some writers and publishers and enacted by Congress can be interpreted as abridgment of access or protection of creative property. The interpretation inflames emotions, confuses legal protection, and limits sources of creativity, foster- |
ing plagiarism and intellectual property theft. The following selected sites were chosen to provide understanding of the current laws, fair use execeptions and rights and obligations of the educational community and publishing world. Library of Congress. United States Copyright Office. http://www.loc.gov/copyright This site has the best information on current and pending law in the United States. Navigation and links for authors and users are clear. It has information on how to copyright your work and links to the Federal Register to obtain forms and legal notices. There are links to national and international sites including Amerian Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and links to the use of music on the Internet. The site has a new and easy to use search engine where you can search for your own and other copyrights with instant results. The Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Law, enacted October 1998, which extended protection beyond terms in the Millennium Copyright Act, is available in full text: http://www.loc.gov/copyright/circs/ sl15.pdf Cornell Law School. Lii, Legal Information Institute. http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/ copyright.html This [is] an excellent site for finding full text of selected U.S. Code and Supreme Court decisions (Continued on page 3) |