ABA Family Legal Guide

Computer Law

Computer Copyright and Trademark Issues

Copying Words and Pictures from the Internet

When is it OK to copy words and pictures?

It is safe to copy information from the Internet when you have the permission of the copyright holder. Please note that permission from the author of the written material or from the artist of the picture is not always valid because often the creator is not the one who owns the copyright. For example, it may be that the publishing company and not the author of the book has the copyright. In most cases, even if the author holds the copyright, requests to produce artwork or extensive text passages not covered by fair use would be made to the publisher and not directly to the author or artist.

You also may copy material that is copyright protected if your purpose is a "fair use" under the law. Specifically, you may be able to copy protected material if you are using it as part of a criticism, a comment, a news report, or a valid educational or research tool--for example, you can copy an image of an artwork for an article that discusses or criticizes the work, but you can't copy the same artwork to make a poster.

The copyright law specifies that fair use shall be determined on a case-by-case basis, weighing the following four factors:

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes

2. The nature of the copyrighted work

3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole

4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work

In general, teachers may be permitted to make copies of small portions of otherwise copyright-protected material if it is intended solely for classroom use, but in many cases they should seek copyright permission first, especially when the amount of the work being copied is large and many copies are being made.

Finally, it is acceptable to copy material that you know (correctly!) is in the public domain.