Re: Song lyrics used in printed concert programs

From: Terry Carroll <carroll[_at_]tjc.com>
Date: Mon, 06 Feb 2006 18:15:30 -0500

On Mon, 6 Feb 2006, Teresa Dulberg wrote:

> Having said that, does the 10% "fair use" rule apply in these instances
> when only a portion of the lyrics is re-printed?

There is no 10% fair use rule. This is a myth that needs to be periodically punctured.

Whether a particular use is a fair use depends on considering four factors:

 (1) The purpose and character of the use;
 (2) The nature of the copyrighted work;
 (3) The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the 

copyrighted work as a whole; and
 (4) The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

In the Harper and Row case, the Supreme Court found that a use of a pre-published book was not fair when only 300 words of the 200,000-word book was taken; and that's something like 0.15%.

Similarly, in Universal v. Sony, the Supreme Court ruled that copying 100% of a work was nonetheless a fair use.

There is no 10% rule of any kind in fair use jurisprudence. Received on Tue Feb 07 2006 - 04:15:30 GMT