Copyright Issues in Higher Education:
Reserves and Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
The Copyright Act of October 19, 1976 is the copyright law of the United States, effective January 1, 1978 (title 17 of the United States Code, Public Law 94-553, 90 Stat. 2541.) This act explains acceptable non-profit academic usage of copyrighted materials, including but not limited to print, art work, music and recordings.
Addressing Reserves and Interlibrary Loans:
This page will address the copyright issues surrounding the use of materials for course reserves in both hard copy and electronic formats.
Also discussed will be materials accessed via Interlibrary Loan and the proper procedures for use within a non-profit academic institution.
At the end will be a list of useful Internet resources such as the link to CONTU Guidelines and FAQ’s on e-reserves.
Reserves:
Course reserve is a method in which instructors can make available materials for students. It can include instructor created course materials, such as study guides, to articles and book chapters.
According to The Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance, the Copyright Act does not specifically address course reserves. The American Library Association has endorsed the following standards for course reserves:
1. The amount of material should be reasonable in relation to the total amount of material assigned for one term of a course, taking into account the nature of the course, its subject matter and level. See 17 U.S.C. § 107(1) and (3).
2. The number of copies should be reasonable in light of the number of students enrolled, the difficulty and timing of assignments, and the number of other courses which may assign the same materials. See 17 U.S.C. § 107(1) and (3).
3. The material should contain a notice of copyright. See 17 U.S.C. § 401.
4. The effect of photocopying the material should not be detrimental to the market of the work. (In general, the library should own at least one copy of the work.) See 17 U.S.C. § 107(4).
The use of library owned materials does not exclude the necessity of obtaining copyright clearance if it is desired to have multiple photocopies made available to the students. See the following section on Interlibrary Loan and Reserves.
Electronic Reserves:
Unlike traditional course reserves, electronic or e-reserves are made available to the students online. They are a relatively new technology and therefore not directly addressed by the Copyright Act.
The following guidelines were summarized in The Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance from practices followed by many academic institutions.
1. Small portions, single articles or chapters, of copyrighted works.
2. Not a substitution for the purchase of books or other materials.
3. If a coursepack requires permission, an electronic version would as well
4. If material does not pass Fair Use in paper form it will not in electronic.
5. Permission needs to be requested when switching formats.
6. Copies should be made from the original either library or instructor owned.
7. Accessibility should be limited to only those students registered in the course, faculty and staff associated with the course, preferably by password.
8. Course materials are to be removed or made inaccessible at the end of the semester.
9. Each entry should contain the copyright notice from and a complete citation to the original material.
10. In the case of accessing items via the Library’s databases, it must be determined if the licensing agreement allows for that use.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL):
The purpose of ILL is to provide to individual patrons access to materials not currently owned by the institution’s library. This includes print materials, audio/visual materials and photocopies of journal articles. Due to the nature of ILL, items requested may not be used on course reserve.
Useful Internet Sites:
Copyright Office
Copyright Clearance Center
The Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance
Permission Request Form
Copyright Office Circulars and Factsheets
The Association of American Publishers’ “Frequently Asked Questions on E-Reserves”
The Association of American Publishers’ “Recommendations for Applying Fair Use in the Development of Electronic Reserves Systems”
CONTU Guidelines (Interlibrary Loan)
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