What copyright restrictions exist on the digital reproductions I receive?
Answer
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement.
Researchers are advised that material still in copyright may not be quoted from or published (beyond what is allowed by the Fair Use provisions of the U.S. Copyright Law) without written permission of the copyright owner.
Researchers are responsible for determining the copyright status of collection materials prior to publication in any format and for obtaining necessary permission from any rights holders. The Center maintains the online WATCH database identifying some copyright holders, a guide to locating those not listed, and other copyright resources, including a list of collections for which the Center holds copyright.
Ransom Center collection materials that are in the public domain may be used and published without restriction, and are not subject to publication or use fees. Researchers are responsible for determining the public domain status of Center materials prior to publication in any format.
For collection materials not in the public domain, authorization to publish, use, quote extensively from, or exhibit facsimiles must be obtained in advance and in writing from the Center by completing the Notification of Intent form.
Independent of digitization fees and fees that may be assessed by a copyright holder, it is the Center's policy to assess a fee for some uses of some copyrighted materials from its collections.
Researchers should include a citation to the Center as the source of the reproductions, using the credit line "Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin."