Copyright, Fair Use, Creative Commons, Public Domain: Copyright

Copyright

The term copyright refers to rights that authors, artists, and other creators have to protect their own works.  Creators are given exclusive rights to

• reproduce or copy their works or authorize another party to do so.
• distribute their works or copies of them or authorize another party to do so.
• publicly perform or display their work or authorize another party to do so.
• create derivative works or authorize another party to do so.
  • Derivative works are those that are created "by changing and already existing work" (Butler, 2004, p.6).  The change can be either slight or extensive.
    • For example, an author of a novel has the right to determine whether the characters she created can be used in another story or context.
• digitally transmit their works or authorize another party to do so.

For a work to be copyrighted, it must be "fixed" in a "tangible medium."  That means it needs to be set in a form and a format that can allow it to be accessed directly by other people or "by a machine or device such as a computer or projector" (Crews, 2012, p. 11).

Butler, R. P.  (2004).  Copyright for teachers and librarians.  New York: Neal-Shuman.

Crews, K. D.  (2012).  Copyright for librarians and educators: Creative strategies & practical solutions.  Chicago: ALA.

Below are several sources for learning more about copyright.