Obtaining Copyright Permissions

 

"Copyright permission" (i.e., the legal authorization to use copyrighted material) is required if one or more of the following apply to material submitted for inclusion in the Reserve Collection or the Electronic Reserve System:

  • The material as submitted violates fair use, brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect criteria.

  • The requested number of copies or reproductions of a single item for a single class exceeds what would be deemed "reasonable" in light of the number of students in the class, and the difficulty and timing of assignments. (For WSU, a single copy is usually sufficient. "Three" is the recommended maximum number of copies of an item for a class.)

  • The material is to be used for more than one course.

  • The material is to be used for a single course for successive semesters.

When copyright permission is required for material, it must be obtained prior to inclusion of that material in the Reserve Collection or the Electronic Reserve System. Obtaining copyright permission is the responsibility of the instructor to obtain. Instructors are encouraged to seek compliance with "fair use" criteria in their use of copyrighted material, and thus avoid the expense and delay associated with obtaining copyright permission. The Copyright Clearance Center is a great place to start.