Copyright: Obtaining Permission

Obtaining Permission

• Keep a record of any transaction which takes place
• Contacting a copyright owner directly use a permission agreement which includes:

1. Who you are
2. Why (reason for reaching out to the individual i.e. “I believe you hold the license for…”
3. What specifically you are using of the work
4. How you plan to use it (in class/ distance education/ commercial/ nonprofit)
5. Where & How (reserves/ packets/ password protected intranet | number of est. copies or uses)

Locating Permission

"Acknowledging the source of the copyrighted material does not substitute for obtaining permission." - U.S. Copyright Office fair use page

When you want to use materials that do not fall in the scope of fair use, open licenses, public domain, or the TEACH Act.  You must obtain written permission from the copyright holder to use the materials in your work.  This includes using the materials in published papers, multimedia, coursepacks, on a course site, or departmental site.  During this process if you need assistance in identifying the copyright holder or obtaining permission please reach out.

Where can I obtain permissions?

From a Licensing Group working on Behalf of an artist/ author/ publisher  including:

      Written Works

• Copyright Clearance Center - provides on demand permissions for a majority of scholarly and popular publishers  

      Musical Works 

• American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP)
• Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) 
• Society of European Stage Authors and Composers (SESAC)
• Harry Fox Agency

      Audiovisual works/ Movies

• Motion Picture Licensing Corporation (MPLC)
• Kino Lorber
• Swank Motion Pictures, Inc.
• Criterion Pictures

      Visual Works 

• Art Images for College Teaching
• American Society of Media Photographers
• Artists Rights Society
• ARTstor
• Aurora Photos
• Media Image Resource Alliance (MIRA)
• SAHARA - from the Society of Architectural Historians' 
• VAGA - Visual Artists and Gallery Association
• Other professional photography lists

Original author(s) located in:

• Copyright notice: c2011 John Smith. 
• U.S. Copyright Office Catalog of Copyright Entries 
• The Authors Registry
• Ask your Librarian, we can help!

Who cannot grant permissions?

• US. Copyright Office also cannot advise on copyright either
• Original Authors IF copyright was transferred via publishing agreement or other gift of ownership.