Week 1: Clear/ Fair Use

Fair Use is a topic that many people find hard to understand. I found it difficult and slightly confusing until this past week in ISM3004. Fair use is limitations on how a person can use copyrighted materials. Many people either think they can use most materials as they wish or that they can't use any copyrighted materials at all, but this is not correct. You are only able to use copyrighted materials if you follow certain guidelines: what you use the material for, how much of the material you borrow, and whether or not the way you use the material changes the original work's value. 

What really helped me grasp this concept in class this week was the "Disney Copyright Law" video on YouTube. I think it was an awesome way to show what Fair Use is and bring the idea together at the end by saying that if Fair Use is a valid use for copyrighted material, than their video on YouTube is protected. Sources the video listed as available for people to use copyrighted materials under fair use are news, parody, and critical comment.

A good example of fair use is cited in the case of Bill Graham Archives (BGA) v. Dorling Kindersley (DK). BGA took DK to court because DK published a book that had seven Grateful Dead poster reproductions in it without licensing from BGA. An article about the case can be found here: http://arstechnica.com/old/content/2006/05/6876.ars. This article is great for understanding fair use and copyright laws because it lays out exactly how the court made their decision. The court went by the three guidelines mentioned earlier in the article and came to the conclusion that DK was protected under fair use.