The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of all photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material at Eastern Oregon University.
Under certain conditions specified in the law, the institution is 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.
The law demands consideration of four factors when defining "fair use": 1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether it is of a commercial nature or for non-profit educational use; 2) the nature of the copyrighted work; 3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used, compared to the whole; and 4) the effect of the use on potential sales.
A person is in compliance with the law if: 1) the reproductions are not used repeatedly; 2) no more than one copy per student is made for in-class distribution; 3) a copyright notice is placed on every copy; 4) no fees are assessed beyond the cost of reproduction; 5) the portion reproduced is selective and sparing in comparison to the full work; and 6) no attempt is made to create or replace an existing anthology or other collective work. These provisions are further delineated in the law itself.
If a work is out of print, copies should be obtained from used book or reprint vendors. If unavailable, permission to copy must be obtained before reproducing. For any repeated or regular use, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder. If copyrighted items in reproduced form will be used on a regular basis, permission must be obtained and/or fees paid to the copyright holder.
Eastern Oregon University reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would invoke violation of copyright law.
Eastern Oregon University expects all employees to comply with Federal copyright laws. Although the Copyright Act permits limited copying without approval of the copyright holder under the concept of "fair use," this exception is very limited. You should not assume that any education-related use will qualify as "fair use."
Faculty producing course packets or other reproductions for reading list materials or class handouts should pay careful attention to copyright requirements. Questions may be directed to your School Dean.
Almost all computer programs are also protected under the copyright law. The only exception may be public domain software or "shareware." Fair use should not be relied upon when using computer programs. You should examine the terms of the license carefully to determine if the program may be loaded on more than one computer at a given time. It will infringe the software publisher's copyright to make unauthorized copies. (This may sometimes even include copying from a floppy disk to a hard disk.) If in doubt, check with the Computing and Telecommunications Service Center regarding the terms of the relevant license.
In addition to injunctive relief, a successful plaintiff in a copyright suit can collect attorney fees plus actual damages and lost profits or statutory damages ranging from $100 (if the infringer convinces a court the violation wasn't "knowing") to $100,000 per work infringed. Ignorance of the law does not mean the violation was not "knowing." A faculty or staff member who knowingly infringes copyrights risks loss of protection from the State Insurance Fund and might incur significant personal liability. Finally, of course, Eastern Oregon University may also impose disciplinary sanctions.
Faculty-produced instructional materials (including electronically recorded materials and web-based materials) prepared by the faculty member in the faculty member's capacity as an employee of Eastern Oregon University cannot be used or reused without the mutual consent of Eastern Oregon University and the faculty member who produced the materials.
[Responsible for Accuracy: John S. Miller, Provost - Last Verified: 7/12/00]