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Why
is copying restricted?
Australia and most other countries have Copyright laws which give
rights to authors, artists, programmers and other creators of material.
Copyright Law is meant to recognise the skills and labour of creators
and is designed to prevent unauthorised use of the creator’s
original work. The Copyright Act protects printed works, art works,
performances, sound recordings, films, radio and television broadcasts
and computer software. The creator has the exclusive right to copy,
publish, communicate (make available on-line) and publicly perform
their copyright work. These are known as ‘economic rights’
and may be sold or licenced. Copyright is infringed when someone
other than the copyright owner exercises any of the exclusive rights
of the owner without their permission. These economic rights are
complimented by ‘moral rights’, such as the requirement
for attribution of authorship (referencing) and a respect for the
integrity of the work. A strong argument for respecting copyright
is that it encourages creators to continue to create because it
gives them an economic reward for their efforts.
Are there exceptions?
Yes, with ‘works’ (published material) there are ‘fair
dealing’ exceptions, which allow copying by an individual
for ‘research and study’, subject to ‘reasonable’
limits. The commonly applied limits are:
- 10% or one chapter of a book
- one article from a periodical (more from same periodical if
the articles are for the same course of study or research)
- 10% of a single musical or dramatic work available for separate
purchase
If you require something for study
and research and cannot purchase a copy in a ‘reasonable’
time at an ordinary commercial price, it may be permissable to copy
more than 10% in some circumstances. You should consult the library
for advice.
Remember - in all cases with copyright, it
is possible to copy, perform or communicate works if you have the
copyright owners express permission. You should keep a copy of any
permission you obtain.
From 1 January 2005, copyright protection will endure for 70 years
after the death of the author for most works in copyright on this
date and any new works produced after this date (some specific types
of work have different copyright terms, for more information see
Duration.pdf). Works by authors
who died before 1 Jan 1955 are in the public domain if the work
was published in the authors' lifetime. Some copyright owners may
choose to waive their rights or grant an open licence to copy. This
occurs when the publication is accompanied by a statement by the
copyright owner to this effect.
What
can happen if copyright is breached?
An owner or entity acting for the owner can bring a civil action
against the person or institution who has infringed. There are circumstances
where copyright infringement is regarded as a criminal offence,
and fines or even jail can be applicable. Costs are invariably high
in any copyright litigation.
Courts consider the economic impact of a breach when awarding
compensation and penalties. Where files are communicated to others
over the internet the impact is considered significant because of
the ease and increased likelihood of multiple copying. Musical piracy
on the internet is currently a major focus for the recording industry.
Recently, a number of Australians were charged over an internet
file swapping service, and in the USA some students have been prosecuted
and forced to pay substantial amounts for illegal copying and others
have made large out-of-court settlements for copyright infringement.
If you use University equipment for illegal copying, or copy material
illegally while on campus you will be breaking the University's
rules. Breaking the University's rules can result in penalties including
a fine, payment for damages, performance of University service work,
the removal of access to any computer or other service provided
by the University, the exclusion from specified parts of the University
premises and the suspension or cancellation of enrolment at the
University.
Material
on the internet
Much of the material on the internet is in copyright. You can't
simply assume that because someone has put something on the internet
and not made any copyright statement that it is in the ‘public
domain’ and may be copied. Sometimes material is placed on
the internet illegally and if you copy it you are also committing
an offence - file sharing ripped MP3 files through BitTorrent or
eDonkey is an example.
However, if using textual material on the internet for study or
research, the fair dealing limit of 10% of the word count can be
applied even if the site contains no express permission to copy.
Judging what is a fair portion of internet material can be difficult.
and you will need to consider whether there is an economic impact
and ensure you cover the ‘moral rights’ of attribution
and integrity.
If you create your own website and decide to link to another, it
is best to link to their home page and not bypass any copyright
statement or advertising (ie 'deep linking'). If you want to deep
link, it is wise to seek permission from the other website owners,
as a number of court cases have been initiated regarding this practice
and the legalities are not yet fully resolved..
Software,
sound recordings and video
Any copying of software, music or pre-recorded audio-visual material
(other than that being copied by staff for educational purposes
in accordance with the relevant licence) would in most cases be
an infringement. Copying these types of files from the internet
would also usually be an infringement. Some sites do state that
copying or downloading is allowed - but evern in these cases only
do so if it would be reasonable to conclude that the statement actually
comes from the copyright owner.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism has always been a serious offence from the University’s
perspective and is now also a legal breach of an author’s
moral rights. With data matching software, the unattributed use
of another’s work can be easily detected. For more information
on plagiarism see the Guide
to Academic Integrity for Students produced by the Teaching
and Learning Division.
Do
- Acknowledge sources – attribution
- When copying from a single source observe the 10% or one chapter,
or one article limits.
Don't
- Copy copyright music or video recordings.
- Make copyright works available on computers accessible online,
unless permissions have been obtained.
- Exceed the limits in the Copyright Act for copying published
material.
- Alter works in a way that might damage the creator’s reputation.
- Fail to fully attribute the source of the published work of
others.
- Seek to profit from the copying and sale of another’s
published work.
Queries?
If you have any questions related to the above aspects of copyright
please telephone or email Derek
Rowlands on 62262228
Or if you require further advice or assistance in relation to:
- Intellectual Property (IP) matters generally;
- Ownership or infringement of copyright and other forms of IP
(such as
registered patents, trade marks and designs);
- Agreements in relation to the licence, assignment or sharing
of IP;
- The market or commercialisation opportunities for IP you develop;
or
- The interpretation and application of University IP policies.
You should contact UTAS Innovation Ltd on 6223 5933 or
visit their web site at: www.utasinnovation.com.au
The University of Tasmania
does not condone any practices by its staff or students that infringe
copyright.
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