Copyright Guidelines

Copyright is an owner’s right to prevent third parties from copying (and doing certain other things) without the copyright owner’s express permission. It affects work that is in a fixed format (ie not ideas, the spoken word or facts). The Marketing and Student Recruitment Office tends to deal mainly with copyright regarding images (photographs, maps, diagrams, paintings, drawings, plans, charts), and so this guide deals mostly with this area. The Printing Centre and the Library can help you with more complex issues regarding textual copyright, or you can look at the University website guidelines at http://www.essex.ac.uk/ipr/.

The kinds of areas that are affected are:

Literary works (this includes Internet images)
Artistic works (including images)
Musical works
Dramatic works
Sound recordings
TV broadcasts

Infringements of copyright include:

Copying material (this includes the storage of electronic media)
Disseminating material (ie publishing/using in publications)
Issuing copies to the public
Showing, playing, broadcasting or filming
Adapting or amending material

How long does copyright last?

This varies according to the kind of work you are dealing with and whether it has been published before.

Here are some general guidelines:

Unpublished images:

If the work was made before 1 June 1957, the copyright lasts for 70 years from the date of publication (official ‘creation’ date);
If the work was made between 1 June 1957 and 31 July 1989, the copyright lasts until 2050;
If the work was made after 1 August 1989, copyright lasts for 70 years after the date of death of the author (if known). If the author is not known, copyright lasts for 70 years after the date of creation. (If the author is not yet dead, obviously you would have to contact him/her or their agent/commercial representative.)

Published images:

If the work was made before 31 July 1989, copyright lasts for 70 years from the date of the first publication;
If the work was made since 1 August 1989, copyright lasts for 70 years after the date of death of the author (if known). If the author is not known, copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of creation (as in unpublished.)

Once a copyright period has expired, an image is officially in the ‘public domain’ and can be used by anyone.

Within a University setting, if we were charged with copyright infringement, this would be considered a civil offence, and the University would be called upon to pay damages.

How to avoid infringements

Check everything for copyright status before using it; each case is different as copyright can change hands. There are essentially two stages:

You need to check the copyright of the original work;
If you are using an image which has been published (from a book, postcard, poster etc) you also need to check the copyright with the publisher;
When contacting artists or publishers, be specific as to your intended usage and give as much detail as possible;
You will not be able to use the authorised material for any other purposes other than those you stated initially;
Use any given acknowledgements as instructed.

How to clear copyright

Document all the efforts you make to clear copyright
All agreements should be in writing
Start early - it can take time
Bear in mind that there may be a charge for use of images still within copyright protection period

For further information on copyright issues see:

Authors License Collective Society (ALCS) - www.alcs.co.uk

Publishers Licensing Society (PLS)

To avoid any of these problems, try to use images that you have created (or had designed or commissioned). Alternatively, use images that you own the copyright to or of which you already know the copyright status.

If you would like any further advice on copyright issues, or help with investigating the copyright status of an image, please contact the Marketing and Student Recruitment Office.

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