The policy governing Reserves is based on the fair use provisions of the United States Copyright Act of 1976. Section 107 of the Copyright Act expressly permits the making of multiple copies for classroom use:
- Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106a, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified in that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship or research, is not an infringement of copyright.
In determining fair use, four factors are considered:
- The PURPOSE and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
- The NATURE of the copyrighted work;
- The AMOUNT and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
- The EFFECT of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
Materials that require copyright permission include:
- A journal article or book chapter intended for use for more than one semester.
- Multiple chapters from a single book or multiple articles from a single journal issue.
- Artwork intended for use for more than one semester.
Materials that do not require copyright permission include:
- Exams, syllabi, and lecture notes of the instructor who is placing the material on Reserve.
- Most federal government publications.
- A single journal article or book chapter used for one semester.
- Works of art used for one semester.
- Material for which the instructor owns the copyright.
In order to make every effort to remain compliant with copyright law, the following guidelines will apply:
- A reading will be eligible for reserve if it has passed the fair use test (purpose, nature, amount, effect) as applied by Reserves staff (in consultation with the Copyright Committee) or if we have verification that the rights holder has given permission for the reading to be placed on reserve.
- Reserves at the library are intended for use by students, faculty, and staff of the University of South Dakota and affiliates of Wegner Library.
- Materials will be placed on Reserve at the initiative of instructors for the educational, non-commercial use of students.
- Materials placed on Reserve for a given semester will be removed from Reserve at the end of that semester.
- A copyright warning will be attached to each Reserve item.
- Textbooks (including faculty desk copies), workbooks, practice tests, other consumable or individualized items produced commercially, and some other materials that are required readings may not be accepted for reserves without advance permission of the rights holder. Most notably if the use of the item does not qualify as fair use (purpose, nature, amount, effect) as evaluated by Reserves staff (in consultation with the Copyright Committee), it will require advance copyright permission.
