COPYRIGHT

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Copywriting vs. Plagiarism

Copyright:

• Overuse of another’s original work.

• Only concerned with original expression.

• If infringement of copyright is proven then legal and disciplinary action can

be taken.

Plagiarism:

• Latin word for “kidnapper”.

• Abuse of ideas and words from someone else.

• Considered unethical and dishonest.

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History

June 23rd, 1789

“Representative Huntington introduced H.R. 10, the first federal copyright bill.

H.R. 10 was a general bill and was possibly based on an earlier draft by Noah

Webster.”

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Protected WorksProtected Works

Defined as the self-expressions, which are protected under

copyright laws.

Works include (but are not limited to):

Architectural, Literary, Musical, Dramas, Audiovisual, Motion

Pictures, etc.

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Unprotected Works

Unprotected works defined as:

Information which can be used by any one and are free to all.

A list of works classified as unprotected works can be accessed without

infringing on breaking copyright laws.

Government works

Important Dates:

Texts dated December 31, 1922 and before are public domain.

“Those works published between January 1, 1923 and December 31, 1978 are

protected for 95 yrs., from date of publication, with proper notice.”

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Library – Licensed Works

Libraries

The local library and those belonging to higher education can

provide works which have granted license, so the user does not

have to worry about breaching copyright laws.

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Licensed Works

Licensed Works

A licensed work, also known as creative commons, can provide the public

permission to share and use their creative work, if they so choose.

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The Web

The Web

Sharing ideas on the open Web includes an “implied license” because once one

makes their ideas known on the Web then others have the freedom to

download it and make copies of it.

It is the user’s responsibility to always give credit to ideas which are not theirs.

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Fair UseFair Use

Implies the idea of giving credit for an idea of another person.

The ways in which Fair Use are practiced include:

Amount and number of times you copy from original text.

Crediting of sources.

Reason for copying material.

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In Favor of Fair Use

In Favor of Fair Use

The following are works which can include other’s ideas, which

do not infringe on copyright laws.

The list includes:

Criticism

Commentary

News reporting

Parody

Adding value to an established text or work. List found at: http://copyright.lib.utexas.edu/copypol2.html

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Fair Use In Favor of Owner

In Favor of Owner

The one area of Fair Use in which the owner claims to have rights

over their ideas is the sector labeled “Commercial”. If others

wish to use any commercial product then they must gain

permission from the creator or owner of it.

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Creator vs. Non-Creator

Creator vs. Non-Creator

With reference to copyright laws, three sectors in particular,

which include nonprofit, educational, and personal, exist between

the idea of “Fair Use” laws and the need to ask permission from

the creator.

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ReferencesCreative commons. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://creativecommons.org/about

Goad, M. (2005, December 27). What is copyright? [Online forum comment]. Retrieved from http://www.pddoc.com/copyright/what_is_copyright.htm

Harper, G. K. (2012). The copyright crash course. Informally published manuscript, University of Texas, Austin, Texas. , Available from University of Texas Libraries. Retrieved from http://copyright.lib.utexas.edu/copypol2.html

Patry, W. F. The Bureau Of National Affairs, Inc. (2000). Chapter

1 - introduction the first copyright act. Retrieved from website: http://digital-law-online.info/patry/patry5.html

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