F air use and copyright are “hot” issues at universities right now. They are at the center of several high profile lawsuits against prominent institutions: from UCLA and its video streaming project to Georgia State University and its electronic reserves program to the University of Michigan and four of its partners in the HathiTrust. Rights holders looking to create new markets in the digital world are threatening institutions who are just as eager to take advantage of new technology for teaching and research. Each of these cases involves the equitable doctrine of fair use. How can institutions find the right answers to fair use questions with so much in flux? What is at stake if institutions choose risk aversion over risk management in the face of uncertainty?
In meeting these challenges, institutions may find it helpful to consult the various codes of best practice and statements on fair use issued by practice communities who are challenged by fair use every day. By providing counsel and other key stakeholders with a considered view of fair use from the front lines, these statements can act as a vital input to risk management decisions that must weigh the risk of legal threats and liability against the value of compelling new projects. Two communities recently have released such statements: research librarians and image media professionals.
Join us for a webcast with some of the people involved in creating these two codes: Brandon Butler, Director of Public Policy Initiatives at the Association of Research Libraries and co-facilitator of the Code of Best Practice in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries; Steve McDonald, General Counsel at Rhode Island School of Design and member of the legal review team for the libraries’ code; and Gretchen Wagner, General Counsel of Artstor and drafter of the Visual Resources Association’s Statement on the Fair Use of Images for Teaching, Research, and Study. Jonathan Band, Principal at the technology lawfirm Policybandwidth and a legal consultant for the project to develop the libraries’ code, will provide a brief update on the copyright cases against higher education institutions. Register today!
Presented in cooperation with:
