Intellectual Property Rights of
Students and Instructors
By
Amber Goushe and Richard Schutt
For
Colorado Christian University
Management of Web Based Classes EDU543
What are Intellectual Property Rights
 Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind: inventions,
literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs
used in commerce according to the world intellectual property
organizations web site at wipo.int (1).
 Many people feel that IP rights are very gray in the copyright title laws.
 According to Ko and Rossen in their book entilted Teaching online: a
practical guide (2), tell of different aspects of IP, paraphrased that many
instructors are leery of their intellectual property being stolen by either
a student or fellow educator. Because so much stuff is now posted on the
internet, it is much more accessible then in the past and easy to copy and
steal if the files are not protected and uploaded in the right way.
 As it becomes less common for university instructors to be tenured, and
more common for instructors to teach at multiple schools, the legal
status of created intellectual property becomes even more important.
What are IP rights (con’t)
 Unless intellectual property rights are specifically written into the teaching
contract, assume that you have no right to the resources you create for an
online course. Technically the institutions that provide the course, own the
course and any materials created for them. Because the course is a profit make,
all materials associated with the course are profit-making assets. Many
institutions are willing to cede these rights, they are not required to. However,
some consider these resources as creations made under “work-made-for-hire”.
 Best advice when wanting to protect intellectual property rights? Get it in
writing! If the institution does not have an established policy, come to a written
agreement with school administrators.
 Suggested steps to protect your rights:
 Copyright it yourself
 Save as a PDF file when posting online, then set it as a no copy restriction on the file prior to
the online posting
Types of Intellectual Property
 There are two types of IP according to the World Trade
Organization www.wto.org (3)
 Industrial (inventions, trademarks, industrial designs, and
geographic indications)
 Copyright (literary, artistic works and architectural designs)
 “Intellectual property rights are the rights given to persons over
the creations of their minds. They usually give the creator an
exclusive right over the use of his/her creation for a certain
period of time.”
Types IP
 “(i) Copyright and rights related to copyright
 The rights of authors of literary and artistic works (such as books
and other writings, musical compositions, paintings, sculpture,
computer programs and films) are protected by copyright, for a
minimum period of 50 years after the death of the author.
 Also protected through copyright and related (sometimes referred
to as “neighboring”) rights are the rights of performers
(e.g. actors, singers and musicians), producers of phonograms
(sound recordings) and broadcasting organizations. The main social
purpose of protection of copyright and related rights is to
encourage and reward creative work.”
What is a Copyright?
 According to stopfakes.org (4), A copyright is a form of
protection provided to the authors of "original works of
authorship" including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and
certain other intellectual works, both published and
unpublished. A copyright protects the form of expression
rather than the subject matter of the writing. The U.S.
Copyright Office handles U.S. copyright registrations.
Why is intellectual property important?
 Intellectual property protection is critical to fostering
innovation. Without protection of ideas, businesses and
individuals would not reap the full benefits of their inventions
and would focus less on research and development. Similarly,
artists would not be fully compensated for their creations and
cultural vitality would suffer as a result. According to
stopfakes.org (5)
Why should I protect my intellectual property?
 Piracy, counterfeiting and the theft of intellectual property
assets pose a serious threat to all American businesses.
Exporters face unfair competition abroad, non-exporters
face counterfeit imports at home and all businesses face legal,
health and safety risks from the threat of counterfeit goods
entering their supply chains according to stopfakes.org (6)
Copy Rights and Fair Use
Basic FAQ’s
What types of creative work does copyright protect? www.fairuse.stanford.edu(7)
 Copyright protects works such as poetry, movies, CD-ROMs, video
games, videos, plays, paintings, sheet music, recorded music
performances, novels, software code, sculptures, photographs,
choreography and architectural designs.
 To qualify for copyright protection, a work must be "fixed in a tangible
medium of expression." This means that the work must exist in some
physical form for at least some period of time, no matter how brief.
Virtually any form of expression will qualify as a tangible medium,
including a computer's random access memory (RAM), the recording
media that capture all radio and television broadcasts, and the scribbled
notes on the back of an envelope that contain the basis for an
impromptu speech.
Copyright Basic FAQ’s (con’t)
 In addition, the work must be original -- that is, independently
created by the author. It doesn't matter if an author's creation is
similar to existing works, or even if it is arguably lacking in quality,
ingenuity or aesthetic merit. So long as the author toils without
copying from someone else, the results are protected by
copyright.
 Finally, to receive copyright protection, a work must be the result
of at least some creative effort on the part of its author. There is no
hard and fast rule as to how much creativity is enough. As one
example, a work must be more creative than a telephone book's
white pages, which involve a straightforward alphabetical listing of
telephone numbers rather than a creative selection of listings.
 For works published after 1977, the copyright lasts for the life of the
author plus 70 years. However, if the work is a work for hire (that is, the
work is done in the course of employment or has been specifically
commissioned) or is published anonymously or under a pseudonym, the
copyright lasts between 95 and 120 years, depending on the date the
work is published.
Copyright ownership: Who owns what?
www.fairuse.standford.edu(8)
 All works published in the United States before 1923 are in the public
domain. Works published after 1922, but before 1978 are protected for
95 years from the date of publication. If the work was created, but not
published, before 1978, the copyright lasts for the life of the author plus
70 years. However, even if the author died over 70 years ago, the
copyright in an unpublished work lasts until December 31, 2002. And if
such a work is published before December 31, 2002, the copyright will
last until December 31, 2047.
What are the exceptions to the rule that the creator of a
work owns the copyright?
 According to fairuse.stanford.org copyrights are generally owned by the people
who create the works of expression, with some important exceptions:
 If a work is created by an employee in the course of his or her employment, the
employer owns the copyright.
 If the work is created by an independent contractor and the independent
contractor signs a written agreement stating that the work shall be "made for
hire," the commissioning person or organization owns the copyright only if the
work is (1) a part of a larger literary work, such as an article in a magazine or a
poem or story in an anthology; (2) part of a motion picture or other audiovisual
work, such as a screenplay; (3) a translation; (4) a supplementary work such as
an afterword, an introduction, chart, editorial note, bibliography, appendix or
index; (5) a compilation; (6) an instructional text; (7) a test or answer material
for a test; or (8) an atlas. Works that don't fall within one of these eight
categories constitute works made for hire only if created by an employee within
the scope of his or her employment.
 If the creator has sold the entire copyright, the purchasing business or person
becomes the copyright owner.
Copyrights registration and
enforcement
 Why should I register my work with the U.S. Copyright
Office? www.fairuse.standford.edu (9)
 You must register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office
before you are legally permitted to bring a lawsuit to enforce it.
 You can register a copyright at any time, but filing promptly may pay
off in the long run. "Timely registration" -- that is, registration within
three months of the work's publication date or before any copyright
infringement actually begins -- makes it much easier to sue and
recover money from an infringer. Specifically, timely registration
creates a legal presumption that your copyright is valid, and allows
you to recover up to $150,000 (and possibly lawyer's fees) without
having to prove any actual monetary harm.
Registering a copyright
 How do I register a copyright?
 You can register your copyright by filing a simple form and depositing one or
two samples of the work (depending on what it is) with the U.S. Copyright
Office. There are different forms for different types of works -- for example,
form TX is for literary works while form VA is for a visual art work. Forms
and instructions may be obtained from the U.S. Copyright Office by
telephone, (202) 707-9100, or online at http://www.copyright.gov.
Registration currently costs $45 per work. If you're registering several
works that are part of one series, you may be able to save money by
registering the works together (called "group registration"). Note:
Electronic filing is on the horizon. As of 2007, the Copyright Office was
conducting a beta test of its web-based registration system, electronic
Copyright Office (eCO). Participants in eCO beta testing may file
applications for registration online at a reduced fee for electronic filings
($35). eCO beta testing covers basic registration claims for literary works,
visual arts works, performing arts works, and sound recordings. At a later
date additional registration claim types will be added.
References
1) WIPO INC. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/ on May 25, 2012, author
unknown.
2) Ko, S., and Rossen, S. (2010). Teaching online: A practical guide. New York, NY: Routledge.
3) World Trade Organization (2012). Retrieved from
http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/intel1_e.htm on May 26,2012, author unknown.
4) Stopfakes (ukn). Retrieved from http://origin.www.stopfakes.gov/learn-about-ip/copyrights/about on
May 26, 2012, author unknown.
5) Stopfakes (ukn). Retrieved from http://origin.www.stopfakes.gov/learn-about-ip/ip/importance on
May 26, 2012, author unknown.
6) Stopfakes (ukn). Retrieved from http://origin.www.stopfakes.gov/learn-about-ip/ip/why-should-iprotect-my-ip on May 26, 2012, author unknown.
7) Stanford University (2012). Retrieved from
http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter0/0-a.html on May 26, 2012,
author unknown.
8) Stanford University (2012). Retrieved from
http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter0/0-c.html on May 26, 2012,
author unknown.
9) Stanford University (2012). Retrieved from
http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter0/0-d.html
on may 27, 2012, author unknown.