Intellectual Property
The Web makes it easy to connect to the creative works of others and to make your own works available to anyone who is interested. At the same time, the Web makes it easy to copy the works of others and for others to copy your works. Plagiarism is easy on the Web.
Types of Intellectual Property
| Copyright | Any original work is automatically copyrighted. The owner of the copyright holds certain specific rights relative to the work, including the right of distribution and the right to create derivative works. |
|---|---|
| Trademarks | Trademarks are about how products are uniquely identified in the market and include protections from anyone trying to use similar identification for a similar product. Unlike copyrights, trademarks must be actively defended. |
| Trade Secrets | Trade secrets are information protected by contractual agreements. Here at the UW information collected by a research project may be protected by such an agreement. |
| Licensing Agreements | Software in general cannot be copyrighted, so it is usually protected by licensing agreements. When you buy software you are actually only buying a license to use the software under specified conditions, such as not making copies of the software. |
Important Points About Intellectual Property
- UW Policy
It is the policy of the University to respect intellectual property protections. - Most Works Are Protected
Under current law, all "works of authorship" are copyrighted automatically at the time of creation. Some works on the Web are "public domain," but it is usually best to assume anything you find on the Web is owned by somebody. - Get Permission First
Obtain permission first if you are planning to copy someone else's work into your Web site, such as an essay from a book or a graphic from a Web site. Often, permission can be obtained quickly by email. If you can't get permission, do not use the material. - Linking Usually Does Not Require
Permission
Linking to an existing Web site generally does not require permission, although it is courteous to inform the site owner of your intention to do so. - Fair Use
The legal principle of "fair use" does allow some use of the works of others, but only in certain ways and for specific purposes.
Protecting Your Intellectual Property Rights
To protect your intellectual property, consider the following:
- Declare your copyright.
Actually, under current copyright law you do not need to have text in your document declaring that it is copyrighted. Any new work is inherently copyrighted by the person or organization that created it. However, if you want to make clear that you have an interest in how your work is used, it is a good idea to include a copyright declaration. Put a copyright symbol (©) followed by the year and your name at the beginning of each of your documents. For example, the following HTML
© 1998 John Smith
would create the following copyright declaration:
© 1998 John Smith - Do not post your works on the Web if you do not
want to risk losing control of them!
Remember, anyone who can view your document can keep a copy.
Resources
- The Copyright Court - Online video developed by UWTV
- Copyright Issues
- Copyright Information for Educators - Thomas Deardorff, University Libraries
- U.S. Copyright Office Home Page
- Copyright & Fair Use - Stanford University Libraries
- Intellectual Property Law Primer For Multimedia Developers
- The Copyright Website
- The Perkins Coie Internet Case Digest
- Keyt Law - Business, Internet, e-Commerce & Domain Name Law