Copyright Center

This site provides a wealth of copyright information from articles to tools to court cases to international copyright to digital rights management and even the Google Book Settlement. You are sure to learn something new!

Visit the Association of Research Libraries website to learn more about this nonprofit organization made up of 125 research libraries in the United States and Canada.

Comprised of the American Library Association Copyright subcommittee, American Library Association Office for Information Technology Policy, and the Copyright Advisory Network team, this network's goal is to "encourage librarians to discuss copyright concerns, and seek feedback and advice from fellow librarians and copyright specialists."

The Copyright Clearance Center is a very helpful site to visit not only when obtaining copyright permission, but also to use when gaining basic knowledge of copyright issues such as Fair Use and the Copyright Law.

Created by University of Texas libraries Scholarly Communications Advisor - Georgia K. Harper, information about managing your own copyrighted works, building on other's works, and university copyright interest is all well-created into a very visual-appealing website. Links to other copyright websites, blogs, and the Creative Commons is also available through this website.

Visit this web blog to get educated on copyright and licensing by reading articles and newsletter discussions and browse books and other resources. You can even contact the creator of this domain herself, Lesley Ellen Harris, who is a lawyer, author, and educator.

This chart was published by Peter B. Hirtle, from Cornell University, and is similar to the above chart, "When Works Pass into Public Domain." This guide is also used to show what works are included in the public domain by listing the date the work was published, what it is protected from, and the term of it's copyright.

In this 12-minute video available through Films On Demand, lawyer Angela Perry explains how businesses can avoid copyright violations and protect their own works.

This website collects and monitors copyright laws all over the world by sharing new laws and making corrections to old laws. Feel free to select a specific country to check on their current copyright laws.

Created by Cornell University, this copyright information center explores similar subject matter as other university's Copyright Centers, but it also lists training programs such as useful online tutorials and downloadable workshops that may be helpful.

Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization developed to allow users to find content and use it freely and without having to obtain copyright permissions from the creator. A variety of works such as photographs, text, artwork, images, music, and videos can all be found within the Creative Commons site and used without permission, but some restrictions apply.

Educause is a non-profit organization whose mission is to "advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology." This site will allow you to learn more about HEOA, which was implemented to reduce illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted works through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing.

Visit this site, commissioned by the Association of Research Libraries, to learn more about the annual Fair Use Week information and events. This week is typically celebrated in February.

The Free Music Archive in an interactive library of musical artists and audio files that allows you to listen and download music legally.

Internet Archive is a non-profit internet library created to help researchers, historians, scholars and the public by providing permanant access to digital archive collections including text, audio, moving images, and software. Internet Archive is a member of the American Library Association (ALA).

The Association of Research Libraries (www.arl.org) provides a brief and informative copyright brochure explaining what you CAN do while teaching in higher education.

Provided by Educause, is a legitimate and resourceful list of legal alternatives to unauthorized downloading. To learn more about Educause, please visit the "Educause" link listed above.

The Library Copyright Alliance is a website consisting of the following members: American Library Association (ALA), the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), and the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). This site provides information regarding updates to copyright and intellectual property laws and treaties.

Get educated by the many resources that the Copyright Clearance Center has to offer such as through webinars, videos, podcasts, and even a blog.

Check out this catchy 1-minute video to get a brief overview of copyright, Public Domain, DMCA, Fair Use, and the Creative Commons.

Check out the Episode 10 More Than Books Podcast where Jake and Joel discuss fair use, copyright law, and why the artist currently known as Prince may have changed everything with a precedent-shattering lawsuit.

Offers over 30,000l e-books that are now in the public domain for free download.

Any song or work created in 1922 or earlier is in the United State Public Domain. Therefore, this site was created to list all of the music that is found in the Public Domain, such as music titles, Public Domain sheet music reprints, and Public Domain sheet music books. This website may be helpful when searching a specific song title to check if it is in the Public Domain.

Re:Create is compiled of creators, advocates, thinkers, users, and consumers who stand for a copyright system grounded in the Founders’ promise to “promote the progress of science and useful arts.” Re:Create upholds and endorses the following principles: Creativity, Balance, Freedom, and Clarity.

This site is managed by the International Trade Administration and the U.S. Department of Commerce and is available to offer information on protecting intellectual property.

Developed by the Electonic Frontier Foundation, the Teaching Copyright curriculum provides an education about technology and digital resources related to copyright. The purpose is to educate users on digital fair use by providing copyright handouts and other supporting documents.

Online journal founded in 2011 to promote public domain materials around the world. Many essays and collections are available for download.

Visit "The Visual Communication Guy" website to learn about "The Terms, Laws, and Ethics for Using Copyrighted Images." This article includes an excellent flowchart infographic detailing the process of using copyrighted works.

The official United States Copyright Office government website that gives all the information you need to know about any copyright questions or issues.

The official United States Copyright Office government website that discusses Fair Use from Sections 107 through 118 of the Copyright Act.

Want to know if a word or phrase has been trademarked or if a process or machine has been patented? Use the United States Patent and Trademark Office to perform a search or to patent or trademark something yourself!