Copyright in the networked world: copies in courses

Purpose – This column looks at questions from teaching faculty about the use of copyright protected materials in an online course. Design/methodology/approach – Copyright guidelines are considered. The US TEACH Act and Fair Use statutes are examined, as well as how to make a risk assessment for the institution. Findings – US universities have a reasonable freedom to use protected materials in the virtual equivalent of face-to-face teaching, as long as it costs the rights holders no loss of expected income and as long as it takes into account the litigiousness of certain firms and associations. Originality/value – Each copyright use assessment has unique circumstances, but a discussion of the reasoning behind an actual case helps to build a community of good practice that strengthens similar assessments.