Copyright for Teaching Purposes
Using Copyright Material under Contract or Licence
Contract Law over-rides copyright law in Australia. This means that if you enter into an agreement in order to use or access copyright material, you are bound by the conditions of the agreement, and exceptions in the Copyright Act such as Fair Dealing provisions and the Part VB Licence, do not apply. Here are some examples of where you may encounter such agreements or contracts:
Clicking 'I Agree'
Some CDs, multimedia and internet resources require you to click 'I Agree' before you are given access. Clicking 'I Agree' commits you to the terms set out in the agreement. The alternative, usually, is that access is denied.
UNE ezyproxy access:
Many Library electronic databases are restricted to UNE staff and students. The University has entered into a Licence Agreement, or contract, with the suppliers of these resources and there are conditions attached to their use such as access being restricted to UNE students and staff of the University. These conditions are outlined in more detail on the University Library's 'Database Licence Regulation Guide' web page.
Signing an Agreement:
Signing a document with the copyright owner of a work means you are bound to the conditions of the agreement set out there. More on copyright owner's permission.
Hiring a film, video or DVD:
If, in order to hire or obtain access to a resource such as a film, DVD or video, you are required to sign a membership or hiring agreement, you should check the conditions of the agreement to ensure that it covers what you want to do.
ILL documents:
Before the University Library undertakes to obtain a book or article from another library via Inter Library Loan or Document Delivery on your behalf, you are required to sign a S49(1) registration form stating that you require the copy for the purpose of research or study and will not use it for any other purpose. If, as a UNE staff member, you require the copy for teaching purposes rather than study purposes, you should inform Library staff, who can obtain the same work for you under Section 50 of the Copyright Act, which allows the material to used as a teaching resource.
Note: Many books include a copyright statement in the front. Web sites too, and even videos and DVDs contain statements about copyright and use of the material they contain. These statements are only binding if you have clicked 'I Agree', have entered a password, or signed an agreement committing to those terms, in order to obtain access to the material in the first instance. Without such an undertaking, you are free to use the resources under whichever section of the Copyright Act best fits your use, for example Fair Dealing, or one of the Statutory Licences (Part VB or Part VA, or the Tertiary Music Licence).