What is Fair Use?
The Law:
- Fair use (Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright code)
provides parameters for the legal use of copyrighted material
without
the permission of the copyright holder.
-
The law mandates that four factors be considered
in determining whether or not a use is fair.
These are:
[link to law]
-
The purpose and character
of the use, including whether the use is
of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit
educational purposes;
-
The nature of the copyrighted work;
-
The amount and substantiality
of the portion used in relation to the work as
a whole; and
- The effect of the use upon the
potential market for or value of the
copyrighted work.
The Low Down:
- Broadly speaking, a "fair use" is one where the
socially beneficial results of the use outweigh
the exclusive rights of the copyright holder.
- However, the distinction between "fair use" and infringement
may be unclear and is not always easily defined.
- For example: an educational purpose does not necessarily make a use fair, nor does using a portion of a copyrighted work for commercial purposes necessarily make it unfair.
- Only a court can ultimately determine if a use is fair and this can only happen if a case is litigated. Nonetheless, the copyright code, legal precedents & fair use educational materials can provide us considerable guidance in making fair use evaluations and/or avoiding litigation.
