Part Two of the Copyright Infringement Series is here. Check it out! 🎧

In this episode, we explore practical strategies for making sure you don’t become an accidental infringer! Be confident that you are legally using third-party copyrighted material. Here are the key takeaways from this episode:

1. Educate Yourself About Copyright Basics:  Make sure you understand what copyright is and what it protects. 
2. Research Before Use:  Before using any content (text, images, music, video, etc.) that you did not create, research its copyright status. Just because something is available online doesn't mean it's free to use. 
3. Seek Permission:  If you can't determine the copyright status or can't get permission, it's safest not to use the content. 
4. Use Copyright-Free or Creative Commons Resources:  Materials in the public domain aren't protected by copyright and can be freely used by anyone. Creative Commons licenses provide a standardized way for creators to grant the public permission to share and use their creative work. 
5. Keep Records:  Maintain a record of all permissions, licenses, and correspondence related to the content you use. Keep track of expiration dates or any other conditions to ensure you stay in compliance with the permission.  

The biggest takeaway is to be fair and do the right thing by respecting our fellow experts’ intellectual property.

Listen to the episode now for more insights and practical tips to navigate copyright effectively. Your feedback and suggestions for future episodes are always welcome! 🗣️💡

Connect with Erin to learn how to use intellectual property to increase your income and impact. hourlytoexit.com/podcast.

Erin's LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinaustin/

Think Beyond IP YouTube Page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVztXnDYnZ83oIb-EGX9IGA/videos

Music credit: Yes She Can by Tiny Music

A Team Dklutr production

Hello, ladies.

Welcome to this week's episode

of the hourly to exit podcast.

This week is part two of

a three part series about

copyright infringement basics.

This week, we're going to

talk about how to avoid

accidentally infringing

someone else's copyright.

Including the podcast, in

part one, which I encourage

you to listen to if you

have not already, we talked

about the consequences and

penalties that can be levied

against an infringer, and

they include money damages

as well as criminal charges

in the case of intentional

infringement or repeated

patterns of infringement.

Of course, no one

is listening to this

podcast wants to do that.

Not just because you don't

want to get caught, but

because we have an ethical

duty to respect each other's

property and intellectual

property is property.

When we think about IP as

inventory, which when you

are an expert, intellectual

property is your inventory.

There is no other business

that we would think that

we can get our inventory

for free, or that we can

borrow somebody else's

inventory and profit from

it without their permission.

That would never happen in

any other business and the

same rules apply when we are

experts and our inventory

is intellectual property.

whether it's that we

create ourselves or that

somebody else creates,

and that we bring into our

business to help create

additional inventory.

I do have an episode

about, IP is inventory.

throughout my episodes,

if I refer to something

that I wrote about or a

previous episode, you can

always go to my website,

think beyond dot com and,

search for it, usually, in

the blog under the blog.

There is a search function

now, for those of you who

know this stuff better than

me, I have been looking for

much better search tool.

because I have so much

content on my website,

including, podcast that I

host and then, a guest on and.

All the stuff I write,

a lot of free resources.

I'd love to have a really good

comprehensive search tool.

So if you have any leads,

please send them to me.

Thanks.

Anyway, back to copyright

infringement basics.

So, IP is inventory.

We don't get to use other

people's inventory for free

or without their permission.

And it happens too much when

it comes to intellectual

property, and our expertise,

because, we can't put in our

hand, you know, like bolts

or, planks and things like

that that we know we have to

buy in order to get the wood

to create a building or to

get the screws to make a car.

because we can

access people's.

Intellectual property, we

can access their expertise

over the Internet, and

we can get it for free.

You're listening

to this for free.

even though it is my

intellectual property,

you can get it for free.

But even though everyone else.

May say, oh, everyone's

getting their initial property

for free off the Internet,

but we aren't because here

at hourly to exit, we believe

in building businesses that

poor put more wealth in the

hands of women and we are

not stealing from each other.

So, let's start with the

assumption that we all

want to do the right thing.

That we want to be fair,

let's call it the golden

rule of copyright that to

do on to others as we would

have them do on to you.

So that means it is our duty

to educate ourselves so that

we don't infringe copyrights

due to our ignorance.

Now, I'm going to make

the assumption that you

would never intentionally

infringe someone else's

copyright and that if it

happens, it's Because you

don't know any better.

So that is what this, episode

is about is making sure

that we don't accidentally

infringe on copyright because

we don't know any better.

And by the way, ignorance is

not a defense with respect

to copyright infringement.

So there will be, 5 steps to

avoid accidentally infringing

someone else's copyright.

1st, educate yourself

about what copyright is.

Number 2 is doing your

research before you use it.

Number 3 is seeking

permission before you use it.

4 is, take advantage of

resources that are in

the public domain or,

can be easily licensed.

And then 5 is keeping

records to make sure you

know the limits of the

permissions that you do have.

All right, from the top,

educate yourself about

the copyright basics.

You need to understand

what copyright is

and what it protects.

This will be a bit

of an overview.

You know, I talk about

copyrights a lot, but,

in the interest of

completeness, we'll also

just have a brief overview

of the copyright basics.

So, what does

copyright protect?

Copyright law protects

original works of authorship

fixed in a tangible

medium of expression.

So that would include

livery works, both fiction

and nonfiction, music,

art, videos, television,

choreography, photographs,

sculpture, anything that is

original, and that has been

put in a tangible medium

of expression tangible does

mean digital, by the way.

So, something that's on

the Internet, even if you

can't pick it up and put in

your hand, it's been fixed

in a medium of expression.

Meaning other people

can perceive it without,

you being there.

So, if I, say this exact thing

that I'm, going to talk about

in this episode today, but I

say it on the front steps of

a, courthouse, on my box on

my soapbox and, I don't fix

it in any kind of tangible

expression, Be get without

recording it in any way.

It's not hasn't been fixed

and therefore it's not

protected by copyright law.

so exclusive rights that you

get when you have a copyright.

Copyrights are

basically a bundle.

You'll hear it in the

singular and in the plural

and it's the copyrights

are a bundle of rights that

the owner has exclusively.

Over the use of their work,

and those include the right

to copy the work, the right

to distribute the works to

the public, the right to

prepare derivative works

based on that, such as, you

translation or an abridgment

or turning it into a course

or creating a video out of it.

to publicly

perform their work.

and so that would be, if I

have this script and then I

go stand on my soapbox, I've

put it in fixed, form before

I started speaking and now

I publicly perform it, that

would be one of the rights

that I have exclusively

as a copyright owner of

this script, including

live performances and

streaming over the Internet.

To publicly display their

work, including display

of artwork in public

places and on websites.

So, even if I own piece

of artwork, I go to

art fair this weekend.

I buy the physical

piece of artwork.

I bring it home.

I own that physical piece

of artwork, but I can't.

Put it online or, show

it off in a museum

because the copyright

in that piece of artwork

stayed with that artist.

I only own that physical,

canvas with the paint on it,

but I don't own the copyright.

The ability to make copies

distribute copies to create

derivatives that still stays

with the copyright owner.

So copyright notice

is not required.

Copyright notices that see

in a circle that should

be accompanied by the year

that it was published and

the name of the author.

That is your

standard copyright.

Notice is not been

required since I think

in 1976, if I'm correct.

So, assuming that you're

looking at a work Is,

modern the 2nd, within the

last 50 years published

within the last 50 years,

the copyright notice is not

required copyright protections

at the moment of creation.

And so what that means is that

there is a massive amount of

original expression that's

posted online every day.

That is protected by

copyright, even if there's

no copyright notice on it,

even if the creator had no

thoughts about copyright

protection when she created

it and posted it, but under

law, copyright protection

attaches automatically.

and just to clarify

that not every use of a

copyrighted work without

the owner's permission would

infringe the copyright.

So it has to infringe on one

of those exclusive rights.

Making copies, distributing

it, making derivatives,

publicly performing,

publicly displaying it.

So, if you're not doing

any of those things with

somebody's copyrighted

work, then you're not

infringing their copyright.

So, for instance, if You're

in your car singing a song,

that is a copyrighted work and

you are performing it, but you

aren't publicly performing it.

So that would not be a

copyright infringement.

there are some shades

of gray in there.

Of course, when I was

originally thinking about that

example, I was thinking, let's

say you just did it, at the

barbecue, you have a little,

Talent show at the barbecue.

there's that fine line

between is that public?

And even if it is public,

who's ever going to find out?

And so, I'll always

be very practical.

And the way I talk about

copyrights and contracts, but

I do want you to understand.

What the strict letter

of the law says.

finally, we have the

concept of fair use.

that is the circumstance

where you can have limited

use of somebody else's

copyrighted material without

their permission and without

it being an infringement.

And, that the purposes

include, criticism

or commentary, news,

reporting, education,

scholarship and research.

since you know, the

audience here, we're in

the business of profiting

from our expertise when

we're using other people's

intellectual property,

we're typically using it.

In the course of selling our

services or selling, a product

that we created with our

expertise, we would not fall

generally would not fall in

the area of fair use unless,

the amount we were using was,

de minimis, yes, fair use

exists, but it is a defense.

It is not a right.

It is a defense.

To using somebody else's

copyrighted material

without their permission.

So, the only way to arrive

at a fair use determination

is through a court of law

saying, yeah, you're right.

You used it, but we decided

it wasn't so much that,

it infringed their rights.

And so that is fairly risky.

I discourage people

from relying on fair use

other than instances of

truly demented miss, use.

And if you have questions

about that, of course,

I've written about it, or

you can always talk to me.

Number two, research before

use, before using any

content, whether it's text

or images or music or video

research, it's copyright

status again, just because

it's online, just because

you can ask that access it

for free doesn't mean that

you can use it, use that

bundle of rights of copying,

making derivatives publicly

displaying doesn't mean you

can do those things just

because it's on the internet.

And once again, the lack of

a copyright notice does not

mean that something isn't

protected by copyright.

So when you're doing your

research, use reputable

sources in the US, you can

search the US Copyright

Office, just Google that they

have an online catalog, where

you can check the copyright

status of a particular work,

you can search it by title,

certainly if it's a The

name of a book or research

paper, by the author or by

a distributor or a website

owner, I consider distributor

publisher website owners

are considered publishers.

and just note that the person

who wrote it, may not be

the same person who owns it.

So, for instance, if somebody

created something in the

course of their employment,

their employer would own it,

not the person who wrote it.

might need to do a little

bit of research to actually

find out who the owner of

the copyrights are versus

who the writer of it was, or

who the creator of it was.

Uh, can also sometimes find.

Licensing and use information

right there with the content.

if you find it on a website or

some sort of online platform,

almost every website and

platform these days as a terms

of use or usage, rights usage

section that will describe

how their content can be used.

some websites, you certainly

those that host creative

content, we'll have

copyright notices, like

some that are aggregators,

specialty, websites that

are, lots of articles

about healthcare issues.

Lots of articles about,

content marketing or

something, and there'll be

different authors and they

might have the, copyright

notices right there with each.

piece of content and then

some may also use creative

commons licenses and we will

talk about that in a minute.

And then you can also

use reverse image

or content search.

So, let's say it's an image.

You're wondering who owns

it Google has a reverse

image function like 10.

I as well that you can search.

And they may be able

to find the original

source of the image.

for text based content, you

can copy the text and put

it in Google, and it may be

able to find the exact match

for that content as well.

And therefore, information

about its copyright status.

Number three, seek permission,

which is also called a license

permission to use intellectual

property is a license.

So if the content is

copyrighted and you want

to use it, reach out to

the copyright holder for

permission to get a license.

So any license that you get.

should be in writing, and

it should clearly define how

you can use the material.

It will say what the scope

of use is, the duration

of the use, for how long

the license, lasts, any

compensation, paying a license

fee, whether it's per use or

per year, or per sale, and

any attribution required.

And then while verbal

permission is valid,

you can absolutely get

a verbal oral license to

use intellectual property.

Now, the issue with that

is what if there's a

misunderstanding and therefore

an unintentional breach.

When you have something

in writing, everybody's

on the same page.

We clearly understand

what the Parameters of our

license, are and therefore

we do not unintentionally

infringe that copyright.

So if you cannot determine

the copyright status, or

if you have determined

that it is copyrighted,

but you can't figure out

how to get permission.

Don't use it.

That's the safest thing

is to not use the content

because there are so many

platforms and websites where

you can find, content that

is either, free to use, or

it's really simple to clear

and get a license for it.

So that would be the fourth

level using copyright free

or licensed resources.

we're here, we'll talk

about public domain works

and creative common works.

So 1st, public domain.

So materials are in

the public domain.

They aren't protected

by copyright, and so

they can be freely used.

By anyone.

When we say something's in

the public domain, we mean

that it is free for others

to use without obtaining

permission from the owner.

And in other words, it is no

longer protected by copyright.

Some creators will explicitly

release their work to the

public domain, and so let's

talk about ways to identify

public domain materials first.

All items produced by

the federal government

are in the public domain.

Note, this is only the federal

government that does not apply

to state or local governments.

Also, in the U.

S.

all materials published

before 1928 are in the

public domain as of the year.

I'm recording this 2023 and

each January 1, Everything

released 95 years earlier

and to the public domain.

So every year on January

1st, a new crop of materials

enters the public domain.

I'm sure you've heard

a lot about, Disney

materials that have

entered the public domain.

because, Disney goes back to

the 1920s sometime, however,

Disney does have trademarks

on, their characters.

So it doesn't mean

you can use them.

but, the copyrighted materials

do enter the public domain.

if you.

Want to use a copy of an

entire book, you want to

just take the whole thing

was published in 1921.

You can just take it.

It is in public domain.

You can use it.

Now.

That doesn't mean you can

say it's yours and put

your name on it and put

your copyright notice on

there saying it's yours

and register for copyright.

You can't.

It's still.

Owned by the original

copyright owner.

It just means that you

don't need their permission

to use it that way.

And 1, easy way to find out

if something is in the public

domain, especially for books.

Is to check there's a

database called HathiTrust.

That's H A T H I T R U S T.

HathiTrust.

And it is a non profit that

researches the copyright

status of, a lot of works.

And they use an expert

to find out whether or

not it is in the public

domain, either in the U.

S.

and around the world.

And if the entire.

Item is publicly accessible

on their database, then

it is free to download

and print and use it is

in the public domain.

So that's just 1.

I imagine there are others.

I just came across

this while researching

this topic of sources

public domain materials.

There are definitely others.

I know there is an

audio book site.

But I can't remember the

name of Libra, something

like free library, that

has, free recordings of

books in the public domain.

and during the period that a

copyright notice was required,

and I believe that would

be, those things published

before 1976, no copyright

notice, then those did fall

into the public domain.

but any case, we do want to

make sure we're doing our

research before we assume

anything is in the public.

Next.

Creative Commons.

So some authors will choose

to license their work under

Creative Commons licenses.

These provide a standardized

way for creators to grant the

public permission to share

and use their work on the

conditions that they choose.

And so you will see these

are letters, That usually

have a little bit of

graphic that goes with it.

I have written

about this as well.

And you can see some examples

of a creative common licenses

look like, among my blog

posts, there are 6 main types

of creative common licenses.

And basically, when

when it says that

they're standardized,

Something is copyrighted.

You want to use it.

if it's not under creative

common license, you got

to go find the copyright

owner and ask for a license,

negotiate the license.

Hopefully you're getting it in

writing and having it signed

when it's something that's

a creative common license,

then you can just rely on

that creative common license

that is literally attached

right there on the work.

And you don't have to

do anything more other

than comply with the.

Thank you.

Conditions that go with

the specific creative

commons license that

is part of that work.

So the six main types, there

is the creative commons

license by attribution.

So this allows you to

do all the things to

distribute it, to adapt

it, to create new works.

Even to use it commercially,

but the condition is that you

provide appropriate credit

and a link to the license

and then to indicate if any

changes were made and what

you can do in a reasonable

manner, but you cannot suggest

that the license or endorses

you or what you've done.

So that's creative commons

license by attribution.

Now there's creative commons

license by attribution.

Share alike, so similar

to attribution, you can

distribute it, adapt it, build

upon it, use commercially,

provided that you give

an appropriate credit and

you must license any new

creations based upon the

work under the same terms.

So, if you do build upon

their work, let's say you

use it and you use it.

In your course, then you

can only, distribute your

course using a creative

common attribution

share like license.

So that would be

the limitation.

They're creative common

license by attribution.

No derivatives.

So you can use the

work for any purpose

including commercially.

however, you cannot share,

adapted material can't

create derivatives from it.

So here you need to

give appropriate credit

and you cannot modify

the work in any way.

Creative Commons licensed by

attribution non commercial.

You can distribute

adapt, build upon it.

You must give appropriate

credit, but you cannot use

it for commercial purposes.

and that would include,

marketing, if you're

using your marketing for

selling a for profit, item.

So you could use it for, just

purely educational purposes.

but not for

commercial purposes.

creative commons license,

non commercial share alike.

and so, you can, distribute

adapt, build upon it.

You have to give credit, you

can't use it for commercial

purposes, and you have to

license your new creation

based on the same terms.

And then you have creative

commons license by

attribution, non commercial,

no derivatives, you can't

create derivatives, but

you can download it and

share it as long as you

credit the original creator

and you can't use it.

Commercially in any way,

and then there's a thing

called creative common zero.

So, in that case, the

creator has waived all

of their copyright and

related and the work.

They're just throwing

it out into the universe

to use it as you will.

It's in the public domain.

You can use it by anyone

for any purpose without.

Conditions.

All right.

In addition to public domain

and creative commons, there

are a number of platforms

like shutterstock, getting

images where you can get

content that they have,

very simple to license.

They have a whole menu

of ways that you can

license something.

You can license it on

a royalty free basis.

Maybe you pay.

a 1 time fee, and then,

you know, pay anything

else based on the use.

and there are a number

of, ways that you can

license images that way.

I do know that there are

periodicals that are similar,

where they have, articles

that you can license.

They have a whole

licensing process.

So it's not something

you have to.

Kind of negotiate on a,

1 on 1 basis, they have

a process for licensing

and using their articles.

and so that makes it

very simple as well.

Make sure that you're going

to reliable sources though.

So, if you're on a

website that says it's

free and that there's no.

Licensing terms on there,

and by the way, that would

include generative a I, a lot

of times, then you need to

be really careful because you

really don't know whether or

not you're getting the rights

to use the material in the way

that you intend to, and make

sure you always understand

the limits of a license.

again, those licenses

will have a duration, they

may have the, commercial

versus non commercial use.

They may have

geographic restrictions.

so make sure you

understand that.

So you don't.

infringe the license well, I

should put it this way when

you are using that licensed

material in a way that is not.

Authorized in the

license, that is a

copyright infringement.

So we need to stay within

the bounds of the license in

order to not be an infringer.

and of course, give

appropriate credit,

when required.

All right.

So the last strategy.

Keep records and

stay up to date.

It's important to maintain

a record of all the

permissions, licenses,

correspondence, because you

may not have something signed.

You may have just done

something by email about the

content you use anytime you

are incorporating materials.

in the work that you're

delivering to your clients,

or that you're creating to

several or 1 to many products

or services from and it's not

something that you created.

It's not your original work.

You want to make sure you

are maintaining a record

of all those permissions.

licenses, correspondence,

so that you understand the

parameters of your permission.

You need to keep track of

expiration dates or any

other conditions to make

sure you stay in compliance

with those licenses.

establish a system for

archiving them and making

sure that you have evidence

in the event that there is

a, you know, someone says,

Hey, you I see that you're

doing this, did you get the

license to this, make sure

you have evidence of that.

so you can defend

yourself as well.

keep records and then

periodically, get a refresher

regarding copyright law.

You No one's trying to make

you a lawyer, but you do need

to kind of have an overall

awareness of copyright laws

just the same way that you

have an overall awareness

about, financial statements

and things like that.

we just need to be.

Mindful so that we don't

accidentally trip up, and this

will be especially important

as the law continues to evolve

and the boundaries tested with

respect to generative a I and

then if you aren't in the U.

S.

be aware of regional

differences.

I only ever talk about U.

S.

laws.

and there are different

laws in different

parts of the world.

And so if you're not in the U.

S.

make sure you are aware

of those differences.

Last but not least, when in

doubt, seek legal counsel.

Anytime you're unsure about

the copyright status of a

particular work or whether

or not you can use it, how

to use it properly, a license

that you received, maybe

you don't even understand

the license, if it was some

sort of, online license and

you're not completely sure,

consult with a copyright

attorney, including Yours

truly, so if you follow

these steps, maintain a

proactive attitude toward

copyrights, you can minimize

the risk of unintentional

infringement and avoid any

potential legal or ethical

complications or reputational.

Complications, so

that's it for this week.

Join me again next week,

where I will talk about how

to protect your material

from being the victim of

copyright infringement as

always find me at Aaron.

I think beyond IP with

any of your questions.

And if there's any time that

there's something you have

questions about something

that I've covered, do not

hesitate to let me know.

I'm always happy to follow up.

Thanks guys.