Re: copy and store an article from a website?

This is NOT legal advice:

• Original Message ----- From: "Rochi,Phil - Director of Library and Media Services" <Roche[_at_]ltcc.edu> To: "Multiple recipients of list" <cni-copyright[_at_]cni.org> Sent: Tuesday, February 25, 2003 4:52 PM Subject: copy and store an article from a website?

Hi:

> I have a faculty member who recently asked for advice regarding this
> situation:

> -he teaches some online (distance ed.) courses in our foster care program
> -he has several articles that he would like his students to read
> -since the course is online many of his students access the course
material
> from various remote locations
> -he would like his students to be able to access the articles via his
> website since they sometimes disappear from their original locations (the
> links he provides sometimes die out)

Clearly NOT proper without permission.

> -can he make the articles available to his students by saving copies on
his
> webspace?

No, not without permission.

> I advised him to contact the publisher or author of the article(s) for
> permission. He replied that the publishers/authors do not respond to his
> requests.

They have no obligation to respond. He must get explicit permission to avoid copyright infringement. Witihout such permission, he is likely infringing copyright by posting the articles on his site.

> Does anyone know if it is possible for him to download and store the
> articles on his website as long as he puts some notice that the material
is
> copyrighted?

No, he cannot do that. You cannot absolve yourself from infringement merely by putting notices on the infringing items! That is a pretty silly concept, no? Copyright protects against copying, and so you CAN'T COPY without permission (absent some fair use defense)! It is really a simple concept. Copies require permission.

Now there are some limited fair use exceptions for educational uses. Also, there may be an implied permission to print an article for your own use (I'm not sure the law is settled on this point, though). He might be able to have each student in a class print the article for his/her own use, and then have them hand them in for future use by future classes. No copying allowed, though.

I suggest contacting an attorney to see how far he can go with fair use concepts. But the point is that the article owners have the right to control their own articles, and if they want to take them away from the public, that is their right.

-Bodi Received on Wed Feb 26 2003 - 16:43:32 GMT