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Copyright Guidelines

Copyright law exists to protect the intellectual property of creators of original works. All creative works are automatically considered copyrighted, whether or not they are registered. The law covers works created in any format, including new technological formats such as CDs, CD-ROMs, on computer disk, and on the World Wide Web; thus works in these formats, such as webpages and computer software, must be treated as copyrighted material. The law is reasonably clear for the general case, however, certain exceptions are made for the good of the public in the cases of educational institutions and libraries. These exceptions are called "fair use", and the factors involved in determining whether something is covered under fair use include:

  1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for non-profit education purposes;
  2. the nature of the copyrighted work;
  3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;
  4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. (from section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976)

These aspects of fair use are far vaguer than the explicit statements for the general case of copyright law, and as such, are open to some interpretation. In order to clarify what is and is not permissible, the House Committee on the Judiciary issued a report (HR 94-1476) titled "Agreement on guidelines for classroom copying in not-for-profit educational institutions: with respect to books and periodicals". SUNY Potsdam's policy statement is a combination of the guidelines from this report and applicable sections of the copyright law. Below is a brief listing of permissible and non-permissible photocopying use followed by SUNY Potsdam's policy statement on copyright. The responsibility for securing written copyright clearance rests with individual faculty; suggestions on applying for permission to reproduce copyrighted material are at the end of this section. Additional information is available at the FW Crumb Library.

Things you may do:

Personal Use:
Make a single photocopy of a book chapter, an article, a short story, a short essay, a short poem, or a single graphic from a book, periodical, or newspaper for your own scholarly research or use in preparing for or teaching a class

Classroom Use:

  1. Distribute photocopies (no more than one copy per student in the course) in class as long as it meets the guidelines for brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect defined below.
  2. Make photocopies of items from current news periodicals and newspapers and current news sections of other periodicals as long as it meets the guidelines for brevity and spontaneity defined below.

Reserves:

  1. Place the originally published item on reserve (i.e. bound book, a complete journal issue, a CD, ...)
  2. Place no more than five photocopies of a work that meets the criteria for brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect defined below on reserve for one semester only. You may not place the same items on reserve after that without written permission from the copyright holder.
  3. Place multiple photocopies of items for which you have received written permission for the copyright holder or paid a copyright fee on reserve.

Things you may not do:

  1. You may not place a photocopy of an article obtained through interlibrary loan on reserve unless written permission has been received from the copyright holder.
  2. You may not place a photocopy of an article on reserve for more than one semester without written permissions from the copyright holder. The law presumes that by the next time you want to use the article again, there will have been enough time to obtain permission from the copyright holder or pay a copyright fee.
  3. You may not place a packet of material on reserve as one item - individual items only may be placed on reserve.
  1. Brevity:
    1. Poetry:
      1. A complete poem if less than 250 words and if printed of not more than two pages or,
      2. from a longer poem, an excerpt of not more than 250 words.
         
    2. Prose:
      1. Either a complete article, story or essay of less than 2,500 words, or
      2. an excerpt from any prose work of not more than 1,000 words or 10% of the work, whichever is less, but in any event a minimum of 500 words.
         
    3. Illustration :
      One chart, graph, diagram, drawing, cartoon, or picture per book or per periodical issue.
       
    4. "Special" works:
      Certain works in poetry, prose or in "poetic prose" which often combine language with illustrations and which are intended sometimes for children and at other times for a more general audience fall short of 2,500 words in their entirety. Paragraph (b) above notwithstanding such "special works" may not be reproduced in their entirety; however, an excerpt comprising not more than two of the published pages of such special work and containing not more than 10% of the words found in the text thereof, may be reproduced.
       
  2. Spontaneity
    1. The copying is at the instance and inspiration of the individual teacher, and
    2. The inspiration and decision to use the work and the moment of its use for maximum teaching effectiveness are so close in time that it would be unreasonable to expect a timely reply to a request for permission.
       
  3. Cumulative Effect
    1. The copying of the material is for only one course in the school in which the copies are made.
    2. Not more than one short poem, article, story, essay or two excerpts may be copied from the same author, nor more than three from the same collective work or periodical volume during one class term.
    3. There shall not be more than nine instances of such multiple copying for one course during one class term.

      [The limitations stated in (a) and (b) above shall not apply to current news periodicals and newspapers and current news sections of other periodicals.]

Notwithstanding any of the above, the following shall be prohibited:

  1. Copying shall not be used to create or to replace or substitute for anthologies, compilations or collective works. Such replacement or substitution may occur whether copies of various works or excerpts therefrom are accumulated or are reproduced and used separately.
     
  2. There shall be no copying of or from works intended to be "consumable" in the course of study or of teaching. These include workbooks, exercises, standardized tests and test booklets and answer sheets and like consumable material.
     
  3. Copying shall not:
    1. substitute for the purchase of books, publisher's reprints or periodicals;
    2. be directed by higher authority;
    3. be repeated with respect to the same item by the same teacher from term to term.
    4. no charge shall be made to the student beyond the actual cost of the photocopying.
    5. Guidelines For Educational Uses Of Music
       
  4. Permissible Uses
    1. Emergency copying to replace purchased copies which for any reason are not available for an imminent performance provided purchased replacement copies shall be substituted in due course.
    2. For academic purposes other than performance, single or multiple copies of excerpts of works may be made, provided that the excerpts do not comprise a part of the whole which would constitute a performable unit such as a section, movement or aria, but in no case more than (10%) of the whole work. The number of copies shall not exceed one copy per pupil.
    3. Printed copies which have been purchased may be edited or simplified provided that the fundamental character of the work is not distorted or the lyrics, if any, altered or lyrics, added if none exist.
    4. A single copy of recordings of performance by students may be made for evaluation or rehearsal purposes and may be retained by the educational institution or individual teacher.
    5. A single copy of a sound recording (such as a tape, disc or cassette) of copyrighted music may be made from sound recordings owned by an educational institution or an individual teacher for the purpose of constructing aural exercises or examinations and may be retained by the educational institution or individual teacher. (This pertains only to the copyright of the music itself and not to any copyright which may exist in the sound recording.)
       
  5. Prohibitions
    1. Copying to create or replace or substitute for anthologies, compilations or collective works.
    2. Copying of or from works intended to be "consumable" in the course of study or of teaching such as workbooks, exercises, standardized tests and answer sheets and like material.
    3. Copying for the purpose of performance, except as in i) (a) above.
    4. Copying for the purpose of substituting for type purchase of music, except as in i) (a) and i) (b) above.
    5. Copying without inclusion of the copyright notice which appears on the printed copy.
    6. Reproduction By Libraries And Archives: Limitations On Exclusive Rights
      1. Limitations on exclusive use have been provided for Libraries and Archives. A library may reproduce one copy if:
        1. the reproduction or distribution is made without commercial advantage;
        2. the collections are open to public or outside researchers;
        3. the reproduction includes a notice of copyright.
           
      2. A copy of an unpublished work can be made only for preservation or security or for deposit in another library (but only if said library currently has a copy).
         
      3. Reproduction of a published work may be made only to replace a damaged, deteriorating, lost or stolen copy if the library after a reasonable effort cannot get an unused replacement copy at a fair price.
         
      4. A library may reproduce a copy of one article of a periodical for a user on request if the copy becomes the property of the user and the library has no notice that it would be used for any purposes other than study, scholarship or research if a warning of copyright is displayed.
         
      5. Reproduction of an entire work or substantial part thereof may be made from the collection if the library by reasonable investigation determines that it cannot be obtained at a reasonable price and the copy become the copy of the user and the library has no notice of use other than private study, scholarship or research and a warning of copyright is displayed.
         
      6. Limited copies of occasional news items, not amounting to substitution for subscription may be made.
        Use Of Videotapes: Limitations On Exclusive Rights
        An audio-visual tape of a program may be made for use of a single class. Such tapes cannot be retained for over 45 calendar days after recording and then must be erased or destroyed. They may be used once by individual teachers in the course of relevant teaching activities and repeated once for instructional reinforcement during the first ten instructional days within the forty-five day retention period. They can be recorded only once at request of a teacher and a limited number of copies may be made to meet needs within the retention period of several requesting teachers. After ten instructional days within retention period the tape may only be used for teacher evaluation. Parts of broadcasts may be used but cannot be altered and the educational institution is expected to maintain controls to ensure the integrity of use to conform with these guidelines.

        Applying For Permission To Reproduce Copyrighted Materials
        In most cases, a letter to the copyright holder (usually addressed to the permissions department of the work's publisher) is needed in order to secure permission to reproduce copyrighted materials that do not fall under the guidelines for reproduction stated above.

The Association of American Publishers has issued these recommendations for faculty members requesting permission to reproduce copyrighted materials: .

  1. Request all permissions for a specific project at the same time.
  2. Do not ask for a blanket permission for all of the material. It complicates the request. Often it cannot be granted.
  3. Send a photocopy of the copyright page and the pages for which permission is being requested along with your application.
  4. Be sure to enclose a return address with your request.

Publishers receive these requests every day. Provided the requests are presented in proper order, they usually grant them quickly and efficiently.

SUNY - Patent and Copyright Policy
The State University recognizes that the purpose of University research is to seek new knowledge for the general benefit and not to make inventions for profit. The SUNY patent and copyright policy is contained by the Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title J.