Copyrights and Fair Use

Copyrights and Fair Use

Copyrights are the exclusive rights to copy and distribute a creative work or a significant part of it.
Read more to learn about copyrights in the academic context and what defines Fair Use.

Copyrights are the exclusive rights to copy and distribute a creative work or a significant part of it. As a rule, it is prohibited by law to make use of any intellectual property without the written consent of the copyright owners. 

The agreements between the Technion and the publishers we work with allow the Technion community to make use of the content available in specific journals, e-books, and databases (available on the Technion Libraries website) for the purposes of teaching and research.

Copyrights: Do and Do-Not 

  • The content available through the libraries’ website is meant for research and teaching purposes only
  • Do not share or distribute any copyrighted content to people or organizations outside the Technion
  • A person who is not acting according to the License agreements is infringing the copyrights and the terms of the license and is exposed to legal proceedings by the copyrights’ owners, as well as disciplinary proceedings by the Technion

What is Fair Use? 

Fair Use permits fair use of a work for learning, study, teaching, and examination purposes by an educational institution. Fair use means, for example, a reasonable citation of the protected material, while stating the source of the citation for research and/or teaching purposes.

Fair Use: Do and Do-Not 

  • Fair use prohibits the User from making any distortion, mutilation or other modification, or any actions that may reduce the value of the protected material, or likely to be prejudicial to the rights owners’ honor or reputation
  • Credit must be given to the author of the work for any use of work or part thereof
  • The fair use principle is designed to strike a balance between the copyrights’ owners right in the work and the users right

Still in doubt? Do not take any risks. Please contact the libraries to clarify any copyright matters regarding the content available to you through the libraries and its fair use agreement. More information and details are available here: https://library.technion.ac.il/copyrights/  

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May 2022 \ Issue #8 \ Writing, editing and graphic design: Reference & Instruction Team, Elyachar Central Library