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Copyright

A clearinghouse of information about copyright for Brenau University faculty, staff, and students

Intro to Fair Use

Fair use is a concept embedded in U.S. law that recognizes that certain uses of copyright-protected works do not require permission from the copyright holder. (See Title 17, section 107)

The following four factors are used to determine if a use is fair:

  1. The purpose of the use (eg. commercial vs. educational)*
  2. The nature of the copyrighted work
  3. The amount of the material used (the greater the amount copied, the less likely it is fair use)
  4. The effect of use on the potential market for or value of the work

* Not all uses in an academic context are automatically considered fair use!

A Fair Use analysis is an essential step in determining Fair Use. See the box below for a handy Fair Use analysis tool!

A Fair Use Analysis

A Fair(y) Use Tale

What is Fair Use?

Click here to download a PDF of the infographic.