Digital Music & Digital Media

Scroll down for information on the following topics:

  1. Reproducing & Uploading Sound Recordings to FOL
  2. Reproducing & Uploading Cinematographic Works to FOL
  3. YouTube Videos in FOL
  4. Reproducing & Uploading Digital Content to FOL
  5. Non-Commercial User-Generated Content (mash-ups)

1. Reproducing & Uploading Sound Recordings to FOL

It may be possible to reproduce up to 10% of a sound recording work as per Fair Dealing under Section 29 of the Copyright Act but any reproduction of a sound recording would be prohibited if the sound recording is protected by a digital lock or technological protection measure.

Permission to reproduce the sound recording would have to be sought from its producer. For information on and assistance with the permission seeking process, please contact the Copyright Services Officer (contact information here)

Section 30.04 of the Copyright Act permits the reproduction and communication of sound recordings that are publicly available through the Internet. But the application of Section 30.04 does not apply if:

  • The sound recording or its online source is protected by a technological protection measure (digital locks) that restricts access to or use of the work or its online source. This includes websites that are password-protected or require a login in order to access content.
  • The sound recording was made available through the Internet without the consent of the copyright owner.
  • The sound recording is accompanied by a clearly visible copyright notice that prohibits its use.

Remember to acknowledge the creator and source of any reproduced content.

Please note that the breaking or circumventing of digital locks in order to reproduce and communicate a sound recording are prohibited by law. More information regarding digital locks is available here.

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Providing students with links or hyperlinks to online content is an alternative to reproducing the online content.

2. Reproducing & Uploading Cinematographic Works to FOL

It may be possible to reproduce up to 10% of a cinematographic work as per Fair Dealing under Section 29 of the Copyright Act but any reproduction of a cinematographic work would be prohibited if the cinematographic work is protected by a digital lock or technological protection measure.

Permission to reproduce the cinematographic work would have to be sought from the producer of the cinematographic work. For information on and assistance with the permission seeking process, please contact the Copyright Services Officer (contact information here)

Section 30.04 of the Copyright Act permits the reproduction and communication of cinematographic works that are publicly available through the Internet. But the application of Section 30.04 does not apply if:

  • The cinematographic work or its online source is protected by a technological protection measure (digital locks) that restricts access to or use of the work or its online source. This includes websites that are password-protected or require a login in order to access content.
  • The cinematographic work was made available through the Internet without the consent of the copyright owner.
  • The cinematographic work is accompanied by a clearly visible copyright notice that prohibits its use.

Remember to acknowledge the creator and source of any reproduced content.

Please note that the breaking or circumventing of digital locks in order to reproduce and communicate a cinematographic work are prohibited by law. More information regarding digital locks is available here.

digital music 2

Providing students with links or hyperlinks to online content is an alternative to reproducing the online content.

3. YouTube Videos in FOL

Section 30.04 of the Copyright Act permits the reproduction and communication of works that are publicly available through the Internet. YouTube Videos ARE considered publicly available online content but a YouTube Video can only be reproduced and communicated to students if it was not made available through the Internet without the consent of the copyright owner.

Here are some tips for determining whether the YouTube Video was made available without the consent of the copyright owner:

  • Consider the username of the individual or organization who uploaded the video. Many music producers, broadcasters, and performers will have official usernames and YouTube Channels.
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  • Consider the description of the uploaded video, it should acknowledge the copyright owner as well as the legitimacy of the uploaded video.
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  • You may see video descriptions that read “No Copyright Infringement Intended” but just because infringement isn’t intended doesn’t mean that it hasn’t occurred. Content that bears this kind of description should not be performed in the classroom or shared with students.
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Providing students with links or hyperlinks to online content is an alternative to reproducing the online content.

4. Reproducing & Uploading Digital Content to FOL

If content is publicly available online, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the content is in the public domain. In order for content to be in the public domain, the creator of that content would have to have been deceased for the last 50 years or longer because copyright continues to protect content for fifty years after the death of the content creator.

Much of the content that you’ll find online IS protected by copyright.

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Section 30.04 of the Copyright Act permits the reproduction and communication of content that is publicly available online.

The application of Section 30.04 does not apply if:

  • The content or its online source is protected by a technological protection measure (digital locks) that restricts access to or use of the work or its online source. This includes websites that are password-protected or require a login in order to access content.
  • The content was made available through the Internet without the consent of the copyright owner.
  • The content is accompanied by a clearly visible copyright notice that prohibits its use.

Remember to acknowledge the creator and source of any reproduced content.

Please note that the breaking or circumventing of digital locks in order to reproduce and communicate content are prohibited by law. More information regarding digital locks is available here.

digital music 3

Providing students with links or hyperlinks to online content is an alternative to reproducing the online content.

5. Non-Commercial User-Generated Content (mash-ups)

Section 29.21 of the Copyright Act permits the use of an existing work, which has been published or otherwise made available to the public, in the creation of a new work. It also permits the dissemination of the new work through an intermediary (a person or entity who regularly provides space or means for works to be enjoyed by the public).

This means that you could assemble images or audio clips in order to create a video and then disseminate that video to the public through an intermediary like YouTube. It also means that you could assemble images or text to create a piece of artwork and display that piece of art work at a gallery for the public to view.

The application of Section 29.21 is dependent on adherence to the following conditions:

  • The new work can only be created and used for non-commercial purposes.
  • The source and creator of the work used to create the new work, must be acknowledged (if it is reasonable in the circumstances to do so).
  • The work used to create the new work was not infringing copyright.
  • The use of the new work cannot have a substantial adverse effect, financial or otherwise, on the work used to create it.
  • The new work does not act as a substitute for the work used to create it.

Section 29.21 is new to the Copyright Act as of November 7, 2012 and has not yet been tested by the courts. If you have any questions or concerns about the application of Section 29.21, please contact the Copyright Services Officer (contact information here).