Hi, Jessica The report I cited was put out by the Congressional Research Service. Their job is to “provide policy and legal analysis to committees and Members of both the House and Senate.” If the CRS, acting in this capacity, determines that the full use of a film may be acceptable under the law that’s good enough for me! I’m not saying this allows anyone to post full versions of films online willy-nilly. You need to meet the points of compliance of the Act, apply the law thoroughly and thoughtfully to the situation at hand, carefully think how much of the work is needed to teach a subject, and then only stream that amount. If an instructor only needs short clips or half the film to teach a lesson then that’s all that should be made available online. However if they can provide strong justification as to why viewing the entire film is “relevant toward achieving a educational goal” then this report seems to be supporting that particular type of use under the Act.
The TEACH Act and fair use are different statutes and I think it is extremely difficult and slightly dangerous to argue that the language of one limits to other. The “reasonable and limited” language is found in the TEACH Act, not the fair use statute. The language talking about the “amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole” is the third factor of fair use and is not found in the TEACH Act. If fair use could be limited by the language of the TEACH Act then folks utilizing it in any capacity, not just educationally, would need to find an instructor to supervise the use. The TEACH Act applies to the online use of works, so if it’s language was applied to fair use then all fair uses would have to be conducted online. The language of these statues should not be mixed. Rather each exemption should be applied to each individual situation to see which one could be utilized to accomplish a goal. You cite the GSU case as evidence that fair use does not allow the use of an entire work but don’t forget there have been numerous lawsuits where the courts have found reusing an entire work to be a fair use. I think it’s better to take a look at the legislative history of fair use then pick one particular case and let that guide all of your practices. Best, Carla From: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Jessica Rosner Sent: Thursday, August 20, 2015 12:40 PM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Re: [Videolib] Copyright question: American Playhouse Films Wow First the youtube copy was NOT a legal copy so you can never use it. Second the idea that if a "film’s entire viewing is exceedingly relevant toward achieving a educational goal.” it is OK to stream an entire film is well nuts and goes against both the words of the TEACH ACT itself and established copyright law including the two very recent cases of Georgia State and Google books where the courts were VERY clear that only portions of larger works could qualify as "fair use". While there is not exact amount that can cover every case both of the above were again crystal clear that there were limitations and ironically one of main elements in the history of determining "fair use " in those and other cases is if the use infringes on the core or heart of a work, thus several of the GSU uses were determined to violate fair use. I don't see how entire work is a "reasonable and limited portion" let alone one that does not get to core of copyrighted work. If it was OK to stream a work for being "exceedingly relevant towards achieving and educational goal" copyright at least in education would cease to exist and there would also be no point in deciding "fair use" if it covered entire films or works as long as they were for education. On Thu, Aug 20, 2015 at 1:58 PM, Carla Myers <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Hi, Lowell The TEACH Act does not actually forbid the use of an entire audiovisual or dramatic work. Rather it states that you can use "reasonable and limited portions" of these types of works. Keep in mind that some thought needs to go into the use of the entire audiovisual or dramatic work. A congressional report put out in 2006 states that: “Although what constitutes a “reasonable and limited portion” of a work is not defined in the statute, the legislative history of the Act suggests that determining what amount is permissible should take into account the nature of the market for that type of work and the instructional purposes of the performance. For example, the exhibition of an entire film may possibly constitute a “reasonable and limited” demonstration if the film’s entire viewing is exceedingly relevant toward achieving a educational goal.” If you want to consider utilizing the TEACH Act to providing streaming access for this film keep in mind that your institution must satisfy the points of compliance outlined in the Act. Peggy Hoon from UNCC has put together an wonderful informational website on the TEACH Act and developed excellent checklists that can help you work through the points of compliance: http://copyright.uncc.edu/. And, as others have pointed out, you can also consider fair use for streaming the film online! Best, Carla From: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>] On Behalf Of Jessica Rosner Sent: Tuesday, August 18, 2015 2:53 PM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Re: [Videolib] Copyright question: American Playhouse Films Well for starters youtube is not a legal copy so you can't use that andyou can't use an entire drama under the TEACH act even if you found a legal copy, basically you will have to try to find out who the owner is and if they will license it though older TV titles tend to be very difficult to track down Lastly it is not public performance rights but streaming rights you would be looking for. Jessica On Tue, Aug 18, 2015 at 4:40 PM, Lowell Lybarger <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: My apologies in advance if this topic was already covered at length. We have instructors at my university who would like to have their distance-education students watch the American Playhouse version of A Raisin in the Sun (1989) that is currently available through YouTube. This version was directed by Bill Duke and features Danny Glover and Esther Rolle. Do American Playhouse films require public performance rights? The URL would be posted on a web course through Blackboard. Lowell Lybarger 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. -- Jessica Rosner Media Consultant 224-545-3897<tel:224-545-3897> (cell) 212-627-1785<tel:212-627-1785> (land line) [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> 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.
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.
