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The Copyright Act at 17 USC S 108 provides a set of rules regarding library reproductions. In general, a library or archive open to the public (or whose collection is available to specialized researchers other than those affiliated with the institution) will not be liable for copyright infringement based upon a library patron's unsupervised use of reproducing equipment located on its premises, provided that the copying equipment displays a notice that the making of a copy may be subject to the copyright law. The notice must appear in a specific form, as shown below.
NOTICE WARNING CONCERNING COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research. " If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.
When copies of text works are requested (the library is making the copies), the warning notice must be printed within a box located prominently on the order form, either on the front side of the form or immediately adjacent to the space for the name and signature of the user. The library may make only one copy of such works per patron. Copying a complete work from the library collection is prohibited unless the work is not available at a "fair price." This is generally the case when the work is out of print and used copies are not available at a reasonable price. If a work, located within the library's collection, is available at a reasonable price, the library may reproduce one article or other contribution to a copyrighted collection or periodical issue, or a small part of any other copyrighted work, for example, a chapter from a book. This right to copy does not apply if the library is aware that the copying of a work (available at a fair price) is systematic. For example, if 30 different members of one class are requesting a copy of the same article, the library has reason to believe that the instructor is trying to avoid seeking permission for 30 copies.
The copying, whether performed by the library or whether unsupervised by the library patron, cannot be for a commercial advantage. This means that the library (or a copying service hired by the library) cannot profit from the copying. In addition, the copying for the patron must be done for purposes of private study, scholarship or research.
If a library or educational institution makes a copy of a work for a patron, the actual copyright notice (for example, "(c) 1953, Grove Press") from the material being copied must be included. If the material contains no copyright notice, the material should be stamped with the notice "This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17 U.S. Code)." 17 USC S 108(a). In addition to limiting the library's liability, the use of the warning notice will defeat an infringer's defense that the copying was an "innocent infringement" and might even support an argument that the infringement was willful, thereby increasing the damages paid to the copyright owner.
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Library Copying After 75 Years |
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In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act extended the period of copyright protection for an additional 20 years. As part of the Act, Congress provided that during the last 20 years of any term of copyright of a published work, a library or archives may reproduce a copy of the work for purposes of preservation, scholarship or research provided that: the work is not being commercially distributed; the work cannot be obtained at a reasonable price; or the copyright owner or its agent provides notice that either of the above conditions applies. | |
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©2005-2008 The Board of Trustees
of the Leland Stanford Junior University. With the exception of the Nolo Copyright and Fair Use Overview, this work is
licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.