Connie Sylvanus
LS521 SP 02
Copyright Assignment
The interpretation of copyright laws has often created debates. New technology, especially the Internet, has created a dilemma about copyrights and what can be copied legally.
The following two scenarios are situations which require a close examination. The challenge is to determine whether, in each example, there is copyright infringement.
Scenario #1
You find an outstanding World Wide Web site on the Internet and want your web
page to contain some of the glittering wonderfulness of this site. You can down
load and use what part of the web page without infringing on copyright.
Before cutting and pasting any material from a web site I would check the site carefully. If there is a copyright symbol on the site, I believe that is an immediate signal that I can not take anything from that site. I can certainly contact the web site’s owner for permission to use graphics, animation, or words from his site. If there is no copyright one cannot assume this site can be copied. According to several sources, since 1989, copyright notice is optional. If the site states that material may be copied and that material on this site is in the public domain, then I may use material without gaining the permission of the web site’s owner. Public domain means that material can be used for any purpose commercial or otherwise without cost. One more issue comes in to play about an item being in the public domain. An article by Atty. Lloyd J. Jassin stated that some shady characters put material on the Internet stating it is for public domain, when the material has been pirated from another site. The “Fair Use” doctrine does not apply to this situation. If I was using this web site for educational use, I might be able to take small pieces of ones site for mine and credit the source, displayed copyright notice, and provide copyright information under “Fair Use”. I may not take pieces of ones web site for my own personal use and still be protected under the “Fair Use” doctrine. The final conclusion to this dilemma is that I may not copy anything on the web for my own personal use without permission.
Scenario #2
Mrs. Urdvardy, a music teacher, downloads MP3 files from the Web and uses
them to instruct her students in the various kinds of music. She allows students to copy the files, listen to them and complete a worksheet.
Mrs. Urdvardy’s original use of the MP3 files would probably be allowed under the “Fair Use” doctrine. This doctrine allows use of copyrighted material for educational purposes. But, there is a limit to how much of the material she can use and in what form. If she uses a small portion, up to ten percent or thirty seconds of each musical file, to instruct her students in different types of music, her use of the material would probably fall under the “Fair Use” doctrine. She would also need to discuss the copyright information as well as show the copyright notice to her class. Where Mrs. Urdvardy gets into copyright infringement trouble is when she makes copies of these files for her class. These copies may be interpreted as taking away money from the original creators of the music by allowing copied music to be taken to the students’ homes, therefore the music copies are owned by the students. The ideal situation would have Mrs. Urdvardy obtaining permission from the owner or publisher of this music to use for instructional purposes.