Frequently asked questions
What is Copyright?
How do you obtain copyright protection?
How do I determine who is the copyright owner?
What material is covered by copyright?
How long does copyright last?
What can be copied outside the Copyright Act?
What copying is allowed under the Copyright Act?
Insubstantial portion
Temporary electronic copies
Fair dealing
Library Copying
Educational Copying
What about email?
Can I copy graphics?
What can be copied electronically?
What is not allowed?
What am I allowed to do in class presentations?
What are Moral Rights?
What if I have a legal copyright problem?
What is Copyright?
Copyright is one type of intellectual property. It is a bundle of rights around ownership and usage of material and acts as a type of personal property right for a person's creative work. It is designed to protect the copyright owner against unauthorised use of their creative work by others. There is no copyright on ideas, what is covered is the expression of an idea in it's tangible form.
In Australia, the rights of copyright owners (eg authors and publishers) is described in the Copyright Act 1968 which gives certain protections for how their material may be used. These rights include the right to copy, adapt, publish, and publicly perform the copyright material. Copyright owners also have an exclusive right of "communication to the public" which covers:
- making their copyright material available to the public online (e.g. via the Web); or
- electronically transmitting their copyright material (e.g. via email or FTP)
How do you obtain copyright protection?
A work is granted free and automatic copyright protection from the time it is written down or recorded in some way. Unlike patents and trademarks, no formal registration is required. While no formal notice is required to be placed on the copyright material it is a good idea to do so, so that your work can be identified by others as being copyright to you, e.g.
Copyright <name> <year>
When you create an original copyright work you automatically get the associated rights conveyed to you under the Copyright Act.
How do I determine who is the copyright owner?
It is not always obvious who the copyright owner is. It may be an individual or an organisation. There could be multiple owners. Usually the creator of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work is the first owner of copyright, but there are several exceptions, e.g. copyright in works made during the course of employment might be owned by the employer and not the employee. Note that copyright ownership rules may be varied by agreement with the copyright owner.
What material is covered by copyright?
- Literary works - includes most novels, poetry, web pages, articles, letters and emails, song lyrics, timetables, databases and computer programs.
- Artistic works - paintings, photographs, sculptures, engravings, sketches, blueprints, drawings, plans, maps and buildings or models of buildings.
- Subject matter other than works - includes sound recordings, films (including videos), radio and television broadcasts and published editions of works.
How long does copyright last?
It varies according to the type of material and whether or not it is published. Generally, copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the creator. Specifically:
Literary, dramatic, musical works:
- Published - generally lasts for 70 years after the death of the creator (there are some exceptions, e.g. under educational and library copying)
- Unpublished - lasts indefinitely in a work that has not been published, performed in public, broadcast or sold as a recording during the life of the author
Artistic works:
- Published - photographs very according to whether it was taken before or after the commencement of the Copyright Act (i.e. 1 May 1969). In the latter case it is 70 years from the year of first publication. For photographs taken before 1 May 1969 it is 70 years from the end of the year in which it was taken.
- Unpublished - lasts for 70 years after the end of the year in which the artist dies, except for unpublished engravings which last permanently
Sound recordings and films - generally 70 years from the end of the year of first publication (indefinite if unpublished)
Radio and television broadcasts - 70 years from the making of the broadcast
Published editions of works - lasts for 25 years from the year of first publication of the edition
What can be copied outside the Copyright Act?
There are cases where the Copyright Act does not apply:
- the copyright is owned by Macquarie University and it waives its rights for use by its employees
- permission is obtained from the copyright owner to copy the material
- the material has been supplied to the University with an express licence to copy the material
- electronic material obtained under licence by the Library
In the above cases, the limits on copying will vary according to the specific agreement or contract.
What copying is allowed under the Copyright Act?
To balance the rights of copyright owners with the needs of the general public and researchers, the Copyright Act provides a number of exceptions to the general rules regarding infringement of copyright. It is the responsibility of the person doing the copying to ensure that the Act is not being infringed. The main exceptions are:
- Insubstantial portion
- Temporary electronic copies
- Fair dealing for certain specific purposes:
- Research or study
- Criticism or preview
- Reporting of news
- Library copying
- Educational copying
Insubstantial portion:
"Insubstantial" generally means one or two pages for a book up to 200 pages in length and no more than 1% if more than 200 pages. For all other categories of copyright material, the Act does not provide a measure for 'insubstantial'. The onus is on the copier to justify that the amount is insubstantial.
The insubstantial portion may be freely copied for any purpose, but a single copy may only be made.
Temporary electronic copies:
Temporary reproductions made as part of the technical process of making an electronic communication are generally allowed. This includes temporary reproductions made in the course of browsing or viewing copyright material online, and in certain types of caching.
Fair dealing:
Typically, students and academics will rely on the research or study provision to make single copies of material to support their study and research. It is considered fair dealing for research or study for:
• Print material:
to make a single copy of a journal article; one chapter or 10% of a book of 10 or more pages (whichever is greater)
• Electronic text:
to make a single copy, 10% of the words
To copy more substantial portions of books and journals, or to copy other types of copyright material, what amounts to a fair dealing is determined on the facts of each case. Fair dealing for research or study, the factors include:
- the purpose and character of the use
- the nature of the work or other subject-matter
- the amount and substantiality of the portion copied
- the possibility of obtaining the work within a reasonable time at an ordinary commercial price and the effect on the commercial value of the material
A single copy only may be made.
Library copying:
The Act includes a number of exceptions for libraries and archives in order to foster research and study:
- Copying by a library for a user
- Copying by a library for another library
The existing exceptions for library copying extend to the electronic reproduction and communication of copyright material. There are restrictions, e.g. a library may only request an article or a portion of a work in electronic form from another library if that portion or article is not available within a reasonable time at an ordinary commercial price.
The library exceptions are subject to fair dealing exceptions.
Educational copying:
University staff may make multiple copies of material for educational purposes under statutory licences. Macquarie University holds two licences that have been negotiated on the University's behalf by the AVCC. These relate to:
- text material (books, journals and graphic material)
- radio and television broadcasts
The fair dealing provisions still apply.
Text and graphics educational copying
(collecting agency is CAL).
This agreement covers print and graphic material, including digitisation and electronic equivalents. Each year, selected universities are "sampled" in order to assess the level of copying performed.
A reasonable portion may be copied - one journal article, one chapter or 10% of a book of ten or more pages (whichever is greater).
Radio and television broadcast educational copying
(collecting agency is Screenrights).
The agreement covers the copying of whole or parts of broadcasts from radio, free-to-air television, cable television and satellite television, including the digitised and electronic equivalents. However, it excludes commercial videos, etc.
Electronic copying:
Electronic copying for educational purposes is permitted under the Act, but with restrictions. The University is required to comply with four key provisions:
- Restrict access to the University community. While the authentication methods are not specified by the Act, the onus is on the University to prove secure access methods are in place.
- Subject to either the same, or restricted fair dealing limitations, e.g. a maximum of 10% of print works (other than journal articles) can be made available online across the entire University
- Annual payments to collecting agencies for material made available online
- Electronic use system to track material made available online. As the regulations for such a system are not yet in place, the University is not yet required to implement such a system.
A detailed statement covering compliance with the above requirements is available here http://www.copyright.mq.edu.au/pdf/print.pdf
N.B. In an increasing number of cases, access to electronic material is governed by a commercial licence agreed directly between the University and the copyright owner (or their agent), and generally overrides the provisions in the Copyright Act.
What about email?
It is just as possible for an email to constitute a copyright work as a letter. What constitutes an original literary work is not made clear by the Act. Much depends on the content. The content of many emails is the same as those of letters.
For forwarding an email to be a breach of copyright it must be a communication to the public. Most emails are forwarded to individuals, who will not be considered the "public". However, if forwarding an email to a widespread group, the danger of crossing the threshold will mount.
As is the case for all copyright material, if in doubt, contact the copyright owner (i.e. the sender) for permission.
Can I copy graphics?
If a work is being copied under the Act, the fact that the part being copied includes illustrative graphics does not matter. The graphics are treated as integral to the part being copied.
However, graphics may only be copied independently (i.e. stand-alone and not as a supplement to the text being copied) if:
- they have not been separately published; or
- copies cannot be readily purchased commercially
If they have been separately published then permission may be required.
What can be copied electronically?
Copyright owners have an exclusive right of "communication to the public" covering:
- making their copyright material available online (e.g. via the Web); or
- electronically transmitting their copyright material (e.g. via email or FTP)
It covers both the digitisation of print and analog material, and the copying of existing digital material.
The following exceptions apply:
Fair dealing:
a reasonable portion is 10% of the words.
Temporary electronic copies:
Temporary reproductions made as part of the technical process of making a communication. It includes temporary reproductions made in the course of browsing or viewing copyright material online, and in certain types of caching.
Library copying:
The Copyright Act extends the existing exceptions for library copying to the electronic reproduction and communication of copyright material. There are restrictions, e.g. a library may only request an article or a portion of a work in electronic form from another library if that portion or article is not available within a reasonable time at an ordinary commercial price
Educational copying:
Electronic copying for educational purposes is permitted, but with restrictions. The University is required to comply with four key provisions:
- Restrict access to the University community. While the authentication methods are not specified by the Act, the onus is on the University to prove secure access methods are in place.
- Subject to either the usual fair dealing limitations or additional restrictions, e.g. a maximum of 10% of print works (other than journal articles) can be made available online across the entire University
- Annual payments to collecting agencies for material made available online
- Electronic use system to track material made available online. As the details are not specified by the Act, it is not yet required to implement such a system.
N.B. In an increasing number of cases, access to electronic material is governed by a commercial licence agreed directly between the University and the copyright owner (or their agent), and generally overrides the provisions in the Copyright Act.
• the sale of circumvention devices and services (e.g. program locks), and broadcast decoding devices (e.g. decoding cable TV receivers) - it does not prohibit the use of such devices
• interfering with rights management information, e.g. digital watermark. Harsh penalties apply to the manufacture, sale and other dealings with such devices and activities.
What am I allowed to do in class presentations?
If you would like to use or point to examples in the course of your presentation you can do so under the fair dealing provisions, just make sure you reference and cite appropriately.
What are moral rights?
Moral rights are a set of rights under copyright law which protect authors in terms of their personal rather than economic rights. Moral rights cannot be sold or assigned as many other copyright protections can be. Even if you work for an employer who claims copyright on works you produce you often retain moral rights.
They specifically relate to:
• The right of attribution - where an author has the right to be named as the author
• The right not to be falsely attributed - where the author has the right for another person not to be named as the author, this also applies to alterations where alterations have not been acknowledged
• The right of integrity - ensuring that the work cannot be treated in a derogatory way or altered in a way that dishonours the author's reputation
If you want some more information on copyright you can find some easy to read information at http://www.copyright.org.au/pdf/acc/infosheets_pdf/G010.pdf
What if I have a legal copyright problem?
Macquarie provides general copyright advisory support and information to staff and students. Legal opinion can be sought from the Australian Copyright Council who provide free legal advice on copyright matters.