This may seem like a naive question, but is all the focus on theatrical because
it is assumed that a program from an educational distributor would not qualify
under fair use because of the adverse affect upon the potential market for or
value of the copyrighted work? And if this is true, would that extend to
segments of a program if the distributors sells digital segments of the program?
I think Film Ideas would be willing to agree its license agreements shall not
supersede the rights already granted to users under copyright law. Although, if
we cannot agree on what the law states, I'm not sure how much weight that
statement carries.
Bob Norris
Managing Director
Film Ideas, Inc.
Phone: (847) 419-0255
Email: b...@filmideas.com
On Feb 6, 2012, at 1:16 PM, videolib-requ...@lists.berkeley.edu wrote:
>
> From: "Simpkins, Terry W." <tsimp...@middlebury.edu>
> Date: February 6, 2012 12:41:16 PM CST
> To: "videolib@lists.berkeley.edu" <videolib@lists.berkeley.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Videolib] ACRL Best Practices
> Reply-To: videolib@lists.berkeley.edu
>
>
> Hello everyone,
> Jessica Rosner asks "If you ... are sincere that you are not the enemy of
> content owners, how bout a simple and CLEAR statement that "fair use' does
> NOT cover the use of feature material being assigned to classes."
>
> I am not one of the authors of the guidelines, but I can imagine that one
> reason they might be uncomfortable with such a statement is because, well, it
> has no basis in the law. We all know the drill by heart, don't we? Each
> fair use decision includes a judgment about the nature of the use (perhaps
> "assigned to class," in a non-profit setting), the nature of the work
> (perhaps "feature material"), the amount being used (perhaps the whole film,
> perhaps not), and the effect on the market (perhaps a large negative effect,
> perhaps it will stimulate interest and sales). The law deliberately requires
> us to reflect on each of these aspects. It is not a mere check-list that
> makes simplistic assertions about whether using one highly-generalized type
> of material ("feature films") in another highly generalized setting
> ("classes") is, or is not, fair use. Why on earth would librarians and
> educators (or any sane individual, for that matter) voluntarily limit rights
> granted to us by law? If the law was intended to exempt "feature materials"
> from the fair use provisions in this manner, I am confident it would have
> been written to say that. Perhaps content owners might make a similarly
> "simple and clear statement" saying that license agreements shall not under
> any circumstances supersede the rights already granted to users under the
> fair use, or any other, provision of the copyright law, just to "prove" they
> are not the "enemy" of education.
>
> The law as written does not protect those librarians, students, faculty, or
> administrators who seek to use fair use as a shield to avoid buying
> sufficient licensed or legally acquired copies. I'm sure there are folks out
> there, possibly even on this list, who do that. There are unethical
> practitioners in every field - yes, including librarians, educators, and even
> media distributors - but the law already prohibits, for example, showing a
> film in a public setting without permission just because someone wants to
> save on licensing fees.
>
> Oh, and my understanding about books is that, when it comes to fair use, the
> same factors apply. As far as I know, there is no blanket legal prohibition
> on libraries scanning an entire book and posting it online. Using the entire
> work, whether in the case of a film or a book, certainly and appropriately
> makes satisfying the fair use test that much more difficult. But it does not
> automatically render it impossible, however much Ms. Rosner or anyone else
> would like it to be so.
>
> Terry
>
> Terry Simpkins
> Director, Research and Collection Services
> Library & Information Services
> Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT 05753
> (802) 443-5045
VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues
relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control,
preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and
related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective
working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication
between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and
distributors.
