2. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Business models providing licensing
agreements and royalty fees to a multimedia
developer for obtaining a content, including
acquiring rights to copyrighted material,
utilizing non-copyrighted or public-domain
material, creating the material in-house or
contracting for original material.
3. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Acquiring Rights to Copyrighted Material
– Purchasing a videotape or music CD does not
authorize the buyer to copy a video or sound clip.
– In order to use copyrighted material, a developer
must determine which rights are needed.
– After determining which rights are needed, the
developer must identify who has the ability to
convey them.
4. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Intellectual Property (IP) laws refers to exclusive
rights in relation to the particular form or manner
in which ideas or information are expressed or
manifested and not in relation to the ideas or
concepts themselves.
• Intellectual property laws are designed to protect
different forms of intangible subject matter.
• Patents, trademarks, and designs rights are
sometimes collectively known as Industrial
Property, as they are typically created and used
for industrial or commercial purposes.
5. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Copyright involves in creative and artistic works (e.g.
books, movies, music, paintings, photographs, software)
and give a copyright holder the exclusive right to control
reproduction or adaptation of such works for a certain
period of time. Permission has to be sought or paid for in
using such materials.
• A patent granted for a new, useful and non-obvious
invention and gives the patent holder an exclusive right
to commercially exploit the invention for a certain period
of time (typically 20 years from the filing date of a patent
application)
• A trademark is a distinctive sign which is used to covers
the title of a publishable work and in the case of fiction,
often the name of its characters.
6. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• What is the Public Domain?
• All materials are either:
– protected by copyright or
– in the public domain.
• Materials in the public domain can be used
freely for any purpose.
• All copyrighted works become a part of the
public domain once their copyrights expire.
7. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• United States works that have fallen into the
public domain include works:
– Published in the U.S. before 1923, or
– Published in the U.S. without a copyright notice
before 1976.
• If a press has republished a work in the public
domain with commentary, introductions or
annotations, this added material is probably
protected by copyright.
8. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Similarly, a translation of a copyrighted work
may be protected by copyright.
• Many publications are protected for seventy
years after the death of the author. (
http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ15a.html)
10. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• If a work is protected by copyright, can I still
use it?
– If a work is protected by copyright law, federal law
gives the copyright owner the exclusive right to
copy, distribute, publicly display and publicly
perform the work.
– The copyright owner also owns the exclusive right
to create derivative works based on the original
work.
11. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Fair Use allows the limited use of copyrighted
material for certain situations.
• Deciding what constitutes fair use is not an
exact science and there are no universally
acknowledged rules.
12. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Instead, it is necessary for someone wanting
to use a copyrighted work to weigh the
following four factors:
– The Purpose and Character of the Use
• Nonprofit and educational uses are more likely to be
considered fair use.
• Transformative uses, like parody and news reporting.
• Commercial uses of the copyrighted work or uses that
substitute for the copyrighted work weigh against a
finding of fair use.
13. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• .. the factors:
– The Nature of the Copyrighted Work
• The fair use privilege is more extensive for works of
information, such as scientific, biographical or historical
works than for artistic and creative works.
– The Effect of Use on the Potential Market for the
Copyrighted Work
• If there is a potential for harm to the market for the
work, this harm will weigh against a finding of fair use.
14. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• .. the factors:
– The Amount and Substantiality of the Work Used
• Fair use is more likely to be found when the user of the
copyrighted material takes only the amount necessary
for the purpose of the use.
• Using an entire work will often, but not always, weigh
against a finding of fair use.
15. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Common Examples & Issues:
• A common fair use issue arises with photocopying
copyright protected materials.
– For example, if a lecturer wanted to photocopy a
copyright protected magazine article to distribute to
students, there could be a finding of fair use under
certain circumstances.
• Another common fair use issue arises with posting
materials on Blackboard/ online educational forum.
– Generally, streaming a short film or music clip from
an authorized copy will be allowed. However, it is
absolutely imperative that you examine the four fair
use factors listed above.
16. COPYRIGHT ISSUES
• Common Examples & Issues:
• A lecturer can play a copyrighted song in class, for
podcasting and posting it on a password protected
website or online system that may only be accessed by
students in his/her class.
• See http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ21.pdf.
17. PRIVACY ISSUES
• When designing of providing information through
a multimedia product or internet it is important
not to touch on the privacy of individuals.
• Sometimes such information reveal embarrassing
facts about an individual that would be
considered offensive to a reasonable person and
especially where there is no sufficient cause for
the disclosure.
• Placing a person in a false light can cause undue
stress on the individual could also constitute a
violation of privacy.