The UW Colleges Copyright Policy (UWCAP #53) complies with UW System guidelines for respecting copyright and fair use. As established by Title 17 of the U.S. Code, copyright provides the creators of original works of authorship with a limited set of exclusive rights to copy, distribute, and perform their works. Understanding what is permissible with regard to copyright and the use of copyrighted materials can be a challenging task. The advance of technology offers many opportunities to create, distribute, and control copyright protected works. Taking advantage of these opportunities sometimes places the scholarly and education community at odds with commercial interests. Copyright law attempts to balance these competing interests and to assure responsible copyright behavior. Therefore, it is critical that all members of the educational community stay informed about their rights and responsibilities. In addition to the material on this site, the UW Colleges Appropriate Use Policy may also be consulted.
The information presented here is intended for informational purposes only and nothing on this website should be construed or relied upon as legal advice.
The fair use exception provides the opportunity for individuals to use copyrighted material for limited purposes without prior permission. Some of these purposes are research, parody, commentary, criticism, and transformation of the work. There are no hard and fast rules that decide fair use, instead, each potential use must be measured against four factors that reveal whether permission is needed or not. These four factors are: purpose of use, nature of use, amount used, and market impact.
Use the following links for more information about fair use and the four factors.
These sites provide guidance in applying the four factors to fair use questions.
For information on how the courts have decided fair use cases, see this site.