Re: CD production in school

On Thu, Oct 29, 1998, Aldie Matta <loringa[_at_]bellsouth.net> wrote:
>
> I have 4 questions that need an answer. I search the net looking for
> a definitive legal answer and could not find one.
>
> (1) If a teacher makes many (over 10) copies of a computer program
> on CD and sells them to their student (for the cost of the CD)
> and the CD's are to be used in a classroom/computer lab setting
> is this legal and what are the possible repercussions?
>
> (2) What responsibility does the person who owns the CD duplicating
> machine bear?
>
> (3) What is the school's librarians' responsibility if they have
> knowledge on this?
>
> (4) Where can we locate simple legal language pertaining to this
> issue?

I'm not sure from your inquiry whether you work for the schools (as librarian), or whether you are a Bell employee. Either way, you need to consult with your school district's counsel. Several points came to mind:

1. First, you will not find an easy answer, or any simple legal language, on the Internet or anywhere else to any legal question.
2. The questions you ask really require advice from your school district's counsel - advice from any other lawyer would be "off-the-cuff," and you really cannot rely on it. I would think that the kinds of question you ask are ones that school district attorneys should be thinking about on an ongoing basis, so that they should not be outside their expertise.
3. For any computer program you are using, your district has entered into a licensing agreement; and the terms of that agreement govern your use of the program in the district.
4. Your questions involve responsibility on the part of both the school and the CD duplicating machine owner - the owner of the duplicating machine has a separate legal problem and would have to consult with his/her own counsel.

If you go back to the licensing agreement that should have accompanied the program, you may find answers to your questions.

Karen Porter, J.D., CPCU, ARP, AIS
Copyright Counsel
IIA/AICPCU
720 Providence Road/P.O. Box 3016
Malvern, PA 19355-0716
(610) 644-2100, Extension 7545
Fax: (610) 993-7583
E-mail: porterk[_at_]cpcuiia.org <mailto:porterk[_at_]cpcuiia.org> Received on Fri Oct 30 1998 - 14:50:24 GMT