Student Unauthorized Distribution or Commercial Selling of Course Materials or Notes - University of Maryland/title> </head> <body> <p> <h1 align="center">Student Unauthorized Distribution or Commercial Selling of Course Materials or Notes</h1> <p> </p> <p>Faculty are reporting an increasing problem with illegal commercial reproduction and distribution of their course materials. The Legal Office has prepared the following information to help faculty understand this issue and develop appropriate practices to protect themselves if they so chose. </p> <h3><img HSPACE=3 ALT="*" SRC="/Images/arrow_red.gif">Who Owns the Copyright to Course Materials?</strong></h3> <p>In accordance with the <a href="http://www.president.umd.edu/policies/iv320a.html">University of Maryland Policy on Intellectual Property</a>, course instructors own the copyright in all course materials they create, including written lectures, power point presentations, study materials, and tests (Course Materials). Course Materials are protected by copyright because they exist in a tangible medium; e.g., written, electronic, audio-visual. For that reason, ad libbed lectures would not be protected by copyright unless they were recorded. It is important to note that while faculty members do not own copyright in facts and ideas contained in their Course Materials, they do own copyright in the selection and expression of those facts and ideas. </p> <h3> <h3><img HSPACE=3 ALT="*" SRC="/Images/arrow_red.gif">What Rights Does the Copyright Holder Have? </strong> </h3> <p>As the owner of copyright in Course Materials, faculty members have the <strong>exclusive</strong> right to reproduce, distribute, modify, make derivative works from, and post and display publicly those materials. Of course, in the class environment, faculty members grant students an implicit right to make a derivative work of their lectures in the form of class notes. It is safe to assume that most faculty members would not object to students allowing classmates who missed a class to copy their notes. In addition, faculty members may allow students with disabilities to record lectures. However, aside from those uses, persons who reproduce, distribute, post online or make derivative works based on course materials for any purpose other than their own personal use are guilty of infringing the copyrights of faculty. </p> <h3><img HSPACE=3 ALT="*" SRC="/Images/arrow_red.gif">What Steps Can a Faculty Members Take to Protect Their Copyright?</h3> The University may not represent faculty members who have complaints of copyright infringement in their Course Materials. As the owners of copyright in those materials, faculty members are responsible for deciding how to address this situation. Nonetheless, the University provides the following guidance for faculty members who wish to educate their students about copyright and perhaps protect themselves from copyright infringement. <ol> <li>Include a statement on course syllabi that they hold the copyright in Course Materials. To ensure copyright protection in lectures and discussions that are based on notes or are delivered ad hoc, faculty members will need to record their classes. A suggested statement follows.</li> <p><em>“The lectures that I deliver in this class and course materials I create and distribute, including power point presentations, tests, outlines, and similar materials, are protected by federal copyright law as my original works. My lectures are recorded or delivered from written notes in order to ensure copyright protection. You are permitted to take notes of lectures and to use course materials for your use in this course. You are not authorized to reproduce or distribute notes of lectures or my course materials or make any commercial use of them without my express written consent.” </em></p> <li>Also place a statement on their course syllabi that persons who sell or distribute copies or modified copies of instructors’ course materials or assist another person or entity in selling or distributing those materials may be considered in violation of the University Code of Student Conduct, Part 9(k).</li> <li>Ensure that a copyright notice is on all materials distributed to students in hard form or through a course Web site. The form of the notice should contain the word copyright or the © symbol, the year the materials were created (multiple years may be listed when new material is added in different years) and the name of the faculty member. The instructor may want to add notations to the notice such as “All rights reserved” [or] “Authorization is given to students enrolled in the course to reproduce this material exclusively for their personal use.” </li> <li>As a result of aggressive recruiting activities by some commercial note companies for class “note takers,” if faculty observe a person soliciting students in or outside a class to “take notes” for a commercial use, they may ask that person for identification to determine if he/she is enrolled in the class, ask the person to leave or stop soliciting, and, if the person refuses, contact University Police at 405-3555 to remove the person and/or file a report with them. Faculty members may want to include this information on their course syllabus as well. </li></ol> <h3><img HSPACE=3 ALT="*" SRC="/Images/arrow_red.gif">What Action Can a Faculty Members Take to in the Event of Copyright Infringement?</h3> <p>If a faculty member becomes aware of a copyright infringement, he/she may generate a <em>Cease and Desist</em> letter to the involved company. A model of a <a href="CeaseDesistLttr.doc"><em>Cease and Desist</em> letter</a> has been created by the Office of Legal Affairs. </p> <h3><img HSPACE=3 ALT="*" SRC="/Images/arrow_red.gif">Additional Resources</h3> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.president.umd.edu/legal/">Office of Legal Affairs</a> for general information about copyright (5-4945) </li> <li><a href="http://www.nethics.umd.edu">Project Nethics</a> for information about copyright and online course materials.</li> <li><a href="http://studentconduct.umd.edu">Office of Student Conduct</a> for information about reporting potential copyright infringing actions. </li> <li><em><a href="http://aau.edu/reports/Rights_and_Responsibilities_2005.pdf">Campus Copyright: Rights and Responsibilities</a></em> (2005), online publication of the Association of American Universities and others about copyright and copyright issues on university campuses. </li> <li>Model "cease and desist" letter to entity or person engaged in copyright infringement. </li> </ul> </body> </html> <table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td height="5" colspan="10"></td> <tr> <td align="center"><img src="../images/SecondaryFooter.gif" width="550" height="30" border="0" usemap="#directories"></td> </tr> </table> <map name="directories"> <area shape="rect" coords="2,1,218,32" href="https://www.ldap.umd.edu/search"> <area shape="rect" coords="225,2,346,31" href="http://www.umd.edu"> <area shape="rect" coords="355,2,457,27" href="http://www.umd.edu/admissions/"> <area shape="rect" coords="463,3,548,27" href="http://www.searchum.umd.edu/"> </map>