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“The Congress shall have power…To promote
the progress of
science and useful arts, by securing for
limited times to authors and
inventors the exclusive right
to their respective writings
and discoveries”
Article 1 Section 8U.S. Constitution
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Owners’ rights• Reproduce• Prepare derivative works• Distribute copies• Perform• Display
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What qualifies?
• Original, creative• Fixed, tangible medium
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Balances rights of owners and users
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“… copyright assures authors the right to their original expression, but encourages others to build freely upon the ideas
and information conveyed by
a work. This result is neither unfair nor
unfortunate.”
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Four Factors
1. Purpose & character of use2. Nature of copyrighted work3. Amount, substantiality used4. Effect on market
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Purpose & character
Fair use Infringement
Created something new (transformative)
Copied verbatim into another work
Nature of the work
- Factual- Biographical- Published
- Fictional- Unpublished
InfringementFair use
Amount & substantiality
- Small amount - Large amount - Heart of work
InfringementFair use
Market effect
- Minimal effect - Deprive income - Undermine market
InfringementFair use
That’s fair
• Parody• Review• Commentary• Scholarship• Research• Education
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