Using copyright material for research or study
by
admin
—
last modified
2009-06-21 05:22
May 2009
This information is for general guidance only; it is not legal advice.
First read:
Because of special provisions in the Copyright Act (sections 40 and 103C), you can use
copyright material for research or study, provided your use is “fair”.
Meaning of "fair"
The Copyright Act has some rules for working out whether a use for research or study is fair.
rule
| applies to
| how much
|
|---|
|
"10% rule" for hardcopy
| Reproducing from a hard copy edition of more than 9 pages of:
| - 10% of the number of pages; or
- one chapter, if the work is divided into chapters.
|
| "10% rule" for digital | Reproducing text in electronic form
| - 10% of the number of words; or
-
one chapter, if the work is divided into chapters.
If the material is available in hardcopy and separately in electronic
form, you can choose which form to use, and apply the relevant test to
work out what is deemed to be fair. |
| articles | Reproducing articles from periodical
publications (such as newspapers, magazines and journals)
| - entire article
- more than one
if each is for the same research or course of study
|
5 factors
| Reproducing:
- images
- text or music not covered by 10% rule (e.g. more than 10%)
- audiovisual items (e.g. DVDs, CDs)
| - the purpose and character of the dealing
(for example, copying in connection with a course is more likely to be
fair than copying for research which may be used commercially);
- the nature of the work (for example, it may be less fair to copy a work resulting from a high degree of skill than a mundane work);
- the possibility of obtaining the work within a reasonable time at an ordinary commercial price (generally, it is unlikely to be fair to photocopy all or most of a work that you can buy);
- the effect of the dealing on the potential market for, or value of, the work (making a copy is unlikely to be fair if the publisher sells or licenses copies, for example from its website); and
- in a case where part only of the work is copied, the amount and substantiality of the part copied in relation to the whole work (it is less fair to copy a large or important part of the work than to copy a small or unimportant part).
|
no guidelines
| - uses other than reproducing (e.g. emailing)
| There are no guidelines in the Copyright Act, but the 5 factors may be helpful.
|
More
Digital Economy Bill Approved by UK House of Lords
Copyright Society seminar: All change for the Digital Economy? Some observations from the history of copyright
