Module 2 - Analyzing and Designing a Web Site
Copyright Issues
Got copyright issues? The web is a public space. If you want to use images/sounds/videos/animations on your web pages that you do not own the copyright to, you need to be sure that you are not infringing on the copyright of the image’s owner. Copyright is complex, but there is a provision in the copyright law for instructional use called the “Fair Use” clause. Fair use can be boiled down to this – if you are using the image in an instructional context, not for profit, and your use of the image is not harming the copyright holder, you can use the image without express permission. To further safeguard yourself, you should cite where the image came from in your Bibliography. Of course, if later you want to sell this site, or otherwise make profit from the content, then all permissions are off – at that point Fair Use does not apply. So, in the context of the projects we are doing in this class, we should be covered by Fair Use.
But if you must be certain, the only way to be absolutely sure that you are permitted to use an image that you do not own the copyright to is to contact the owner of the image for permission.