Hi sliderule
"Can I leagally distribute the program or a modified version of it
free to educational institutions if the copyright statement is kept
intact?"
Briefly, probably yes, but as a courtesy it would be best to try and
contact the new owner of the website to ask. Keep hard copies of all
correspondence and you should be fine. You have a number of points in
your favor:
1. The Fair Use law clearly covers distributing material for
educational purposes versus copying the material for commercial
profit..
2. The current website (not a cached version) still states, "free use
by educational institutions is permitted, as long as copyright notice
is maintained."
3. All material on the internet is copyrighted (whether it says so or
not) but you can only be sued if the copyright is registered.
>>> 1. FAIR USE: The law [see (1)]:
Chapter 1: An Overview of Copyright: II.I. Fair Use:
"Probably one of the most misunderstood concepts in copyright law is
fair use. This is a doctrine that provides a defense to copyright
infringement for some acts. But determination of whether or not
something is a fair use is fact-intensive. No particular act is
automatically fair use, and all four factors listed in Section 107
must be considered:
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use
of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for
purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching
(including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or
research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether
the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the
factors to be considered shall include?
(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such
use is of a commercial nature or is for *nonprofit educational
purposes*;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation
to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of
the copyrighted work."
http://digital-law-online.info/lpdi1.0/treatise13.html
Copyright for Computer Authors: Fair Use:
"...This doctrine is especially liberal where the use advances public
interests such as education or scholarship..."
http://www.piercelaw.edu/tfield/copysof.htm
>>> 2. Contacting the Owner
The death of the original owner doesn't erase the copyright. If the
material was registered, the copyright would've been part of the
estate and passed to the heirs. If the material wasn't registered,
then it becomes the property of the new owner of the website. You can
find out who is the current owner by doing a WhoIs search.
WhoIs search:
http://www.whois.net/
If you are unable to make any contact with the website owner, you
could include a statement similar to the following:
"This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not
always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We believe
this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance
with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is
distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving the included information for research and
educational purposes.
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0507-02.htm
>>> 3. Registered Copyrights
All material on the internet is copyrighted, whether there is a
copyright statement or not. However, in order to sue for infringement
of copyright, the copyright must be registered with the Library of
Congress.
Copyright and the Internet:
"Even if no copyright notice appears, the material is copyrighted
since it was published on the Internet after 1989. the year when
copyright notice was no longer required."
"You may not copy material from a Web site onto your site without
permission. You may provide a link, however."
"You may copy if permission is expressly granted on the web site from
which you are taking the information."
http://www.pnc.edu/cd/copyright/internet.html
What is a registered copyright?
"Copyright is granted automatically, but you must register the
copyright with the Library of Congress to be able to sue if someone
infringes your copyright. The registration process is inexpensive and
may be done at any time up to 3 months after the infringement has
occurred. If you register prior to infringement you are able to sue
for additional damages and attorneys fees."
http://www.ucop.edu/ott/crbasics.html
>>> Additional Links of Interest:
What is copyright?
"Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution
and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a
tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and
unpublished works."
"When is my work protected?
Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and
fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or
with the aid of a machine or device."
http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html
Copyright Laws and the Internet:
"Works put on the Internet are considered ?published? and therefore
qualify for copyright protection. A work put on the Internet is not
considered public domain simply because it was posted on the Internet
and free for anyone to download and copy. You need permission from the
site owner to publish any materials, including photographs, music, and
artwork from the site."
http://www.legal-database.com/copyright-laws-internet-law.htm
10 Big Myths about copyright explained:
"For example, in the USA, almost everything created privately and
originally after April 1, 1989 is copyrighted and protected whether it
has a notice or not. The default you should assume for other people's
works is that they are copyrighted and may not be copied unless you
know otherwise."
"Postings to the net are not granted to the public domain, and don't
grant you any permission to do further copying except perhaps the sort
of copying the poster might have expected in the ordinary flow of the
net."
http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html
Copyright on the Internet Quiz:
http://literacy.kent.edu/Oasis/Workshops/copyquiz.html
I hope I've been able to sort this out for you. If you have any
questions, please post a clarification request before closing/rating
my answer and I'll be happy to reply. Please read the "Important
Disclaimer" at the bottom of this page, advising that Google answers
are provided for general information an are not intended to be a
substitute for legal advice.
Thank you,
hummer
I have researched many copyright issues and was able to access my own
documents to answer your question. |
Clarification of Answer by
hummer-ga
on
04 Sep 2004 11:27 PDT
Sorry, I forgot to include this link in my last post -
Search for copyright information:
Registrations of books, music, films, sound recordings, maps,
software, photos, art, and multimedia. Also includes all renewals.
http://www.copyright.gov/records/cohm.html
Yes, contacting his former department would be the thing to do. It
might take a while to actually get connected to the person who knows
about it, but somebody should. With alittle luck, the same secretary
will still be there (secretaries are a wealth of information!).
hummer
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