LibGuides: Copyright: TEACH Act

Introduction

The Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH Act) was signed into law on November 2nd, 2002. According to NewsNet, the online newsletter published by the U.S. Copyright Office, the act "amends the Copyright Act to provide increased flexibility for accredited nonprofit educational institutions, as part of “mediated instructional activities,” to use the Internet to provide copyrighted materials to students enrolled in distance education programs."

This section will provide links to more information about how educators can navigate copyright law in the virtual classroom and other online arenas. This information is especially timely given the dramatic move to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This does not give complete license for educators to show all types of performances in any cases. Depending on the circumstances, educators may need to acquire permission from the publisher to display to their classrooms, or consult their academic librarians to see if there is a copy that can be purchased or licensed from the publisher or authorized vendor.

TEACH Act Documentation

Section 110 U.S. Copyright Law: Limitations on exclusive rights: Exemption of certain performances and displays
U.S. Copyright Office: TEACH Act Senate Report
"This important legislation updates sections 110(2) and 112 of the Copyright Act to allow the same activities to take place using digital delivery mechanisms that were permitted under the policy balance that was struck by Congress when the law was enacted in 1976, while introducing safeguards to minimize the additional risks to copyright owners that are inherent in exploiting works in a digital format."

U.S. Copyright Office Newsletter on TEACH Act

The text of the TEACH Act, previously introduced as S. 487, and the Copyright Technical Corrections Act, previously introduced as H.R. 614, may be found through the Legislation page of the Copyright Office website.

Responsibilities of Educational Institutions

Please review the language in Section 110(d) of the U.S. Copyright law regarding the responsibilities of education institutions in relation to the TEACH Act:

(D) the transmitting body or institution—

(i) institutes policies regarding copyright, provides informational materials to faculty, students, and relevant staff members that accurately describe, and promote compliance with, the laws of the United States relating to copyright, and provides notice to students that materials used in connection with the course may be subject to copyright protection; and

(ii) in the case of digital transmissions—

(I) applies technological measures that reasonably prevent—

(aa) retention of the work in accessible form by recipients of the transmission from the transmitting body or institution for longer than the class session; and

(bb) unauthorized further dissemination of the work in accessible form by such recipients to others; and

(II) does not engage in conduct that could reasonably be expected to interfere with technological measures used by copyright owners to prevent such retention or unauthorized further dissemination

Teach Act Best Practices

Copyright Alliance: TEACH Act Provides Distance Learning Flexibility
Highlights components of the TEACH Act in regards to distance learning.
Copyright and Distance Learning: Lessons from the TEACH Act
Commentary on the TEACH Act in relation to distance learning during COVID and beyond.
Duke University: TEACH Act-Online Performances
A short video discussion between the Director of Copyright and Scholarly Communications at Duke University and the Director of Scholarly Communications at Emory University. They break down the copyright sections 110(2) and 112(f) in regards to distance learning classrooms and online performances.
Fair Use vs. TEACH Act
Penn State FAQ page that addresses the differences between Fair Use and the TEACH Act.
Suggested TEACH Act Copyright Notice in the Classroom
Provides a sample notice educators may use in their classroom when using copyrighted materials online.
University of Texas Libraries: Basic TEACH Act Checklist
A basic checklist to assist educators in deciding if their use of resources in the online classroom meet TEACH Act compliance.

Films on Campus

Although KCTCS is an accredited, nonprofit educational institution, that status does not include public performance rights for documentaries, educational films, popular movies, etc., whether or not an admission fee is charged. In order to qualify for educational use under the TEACH Act, a film shown on campus must:

be part of mediated instructional activities.
be limited to a specific number of students enrolled in a specific class.
be for ‘live’ or asynchronous class sessions.

Before showing a film on campus, please secure permission from the copyright holder, either by contacting them directly or using a third party licensing company (such as Swank).