Fair Use
Fair use is a concept embedded in U.S. law that recognizes that certain uses of copyright-protected works do not require permission from the copyright holder. (See Title 17, Section 107)
What Determines Fair Use?
The following four factors are used to determine if a use is fair:
- The purpose of the use (eg. commercial vs. educational)*
- The nature of the copyrighted work
- The amount of the material used
- The effect of use on the potential market for or value of the work
*Note that not all uses in academic context are automatically considered fair use!
Fair Use in Academia
The Fair Use Doctrine is probably the most important exemption to copyright protections for educational settings, allowing many uses of copyrighted works for the purposes of teaching and research. The complexity of fair use and its importance in academia make it imperative that every member of Kutztown University understands how to make judgments concerning fair use.
Tools to Help You Determine Fair Use
- Fair Use Evaluator: helps users collect, organize, and document the information they may need to support a fair use claim, and provides a time-stamped PDF document for the users’ records. Developed by the American Library Association, Office for Information Technology Policy.
- Thinking Through Fair Use Tool: guides users through the process of determining if a use is fair. Developed by The University of Minnesota Libraries.