College Copyright Law: Getting Permission

Many publishers, authors, and artists have licensing agencies handle permissions for them, so a good place to start is with one of those agencies.

It may be necessary or desirable to contact the copyright owner directly; that is usually the person or organization named in the copyright notice.

If they do not own the copyright, they should be able to refer you to the proper resource. Copyrights may also be transferred to others or perhaps the copyright is now owned by heirs. The Copyright Office maintains an online, searchable database of materials registered since January 1978. All formats are available.

Stanford University maintains the Copyright Renewal Database. "This database makes searchable the copyright renewal records received by the US Copyright Office between 1950 and 1993 for books published in the US between 1923 and 1963." The database contains only book renewals. This time period is one of the most difficult in determining whether a copyrighted book passed into the public domain by not having the copyright renewed.

See "Locating Copyright Holders" by Lloyd J. Jassin for some other suggestions.

Fees can range from the nominal to expensive.

Collective licensing agencies are organizations meant to centralize copyright ownership information for their respective industries. These centers can expedite your search, either by putting you directly in touch with a copyright owner or by negotiating the copyright usage itself. However, most of these agencies do charge a fee for their services.

For information about industry- or format-specific licensing agencies, see the University System of Georgia's comprehensive Collective Licensing Agencies guide.

The letter, on letterhead, should include:

• A complete description of the material to be used including author, title, editor, compiler, translator, and edition.
• The exact portion of the material, pages, and a photocopy if possible
• A description of how it will be used, including how many times, the number of people it will be distributed to, under what conditions (i.e. on or off campus, online course...)
• How the material will be reproduced (photocopy, off-set, digitized, etc.)
• A place for the recipient to sign to indicate that permission has been granted.

Remember that a non-response (silence) is not permission. If you receive oral permission, make sure you document the conversation and follow up with a letter.

Permissions Department
Publisher
Town, ST 12345

Month, Day, Year

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing to ask your permission to copy the following for classroom use next semester, September 20xx:

Author: John Smith
Book Title: The Life of John Smith, 3rd ed., 1982 (out of print)
Copyright: 1979, 1982
Pages: 23-35 of Chapter 10 "Life Abroad" (photocopy enclosed).
Number of Copies: 60 (3 sections of History 256, U. S. History to 1865)
Distribution: Supplied to students as free handout fall quarter 2001
Type of reprint: photocopy

Enclosed please find a self-addressed, stamped envelope for your convenience in returning this signed permission.

If you do not solely control copyright of the requested material, I would appreciate any information you can provide about the copyright owners, including most recent addresses if available.

Sincerely,

Dr. B. Jones
Professor
College of DuPage
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137

Please initial any statement that applies:

• I hereby represent that I have the authority to grant the permission requested herein.
• I am the sole owner/author of the work.

Author or company authorized signature _________________________
Date _______________________