Digital Content on Blackboard / WebCT

MacEwan's Access Copyright licensing agreement covers print format only. Postings of copyright material, even on password protected pages such as Blackboard, require permission from content owners. Most content owners will give permission to post content, however there may be a royalty payment required. Most book publishers are likely to require additional fees for posting content and will limit the amount of content that can be posted from a single source. If the content you wish to post can be offered in print format, you may want to consider printing a coursepack of those readings and have students purchase them with their texts.

Please contact Scott Day, MacEwan Copyright Specialist, 497-4277 or days@macewan.ca for information and assistance with obtaining permissions.

Converting Print or Audiovisual Materials to Digital Format

Digitize if:
The work is in public domain, or if you are using an insubstantial part of the work. In the case of print materials, an insubstantial quotation (no more than a few sentences) will probably require only proper attribution and full citation.

You need permission to digitize if:
You want to scan, copy or upload an entire work, or a substantial part of a work. Some examples of an entire work include a newspaper, magazine, or journal article, a graph, chart, diagram, photograph, logo or an illustration, to name a few.

It is recommended that instructors err on the side of caution and seek permission to digitize any audio or audiovisual content.

Remember also, even if permission to digitize content has been granted, the source of your content should be credited.

Copyright Checklist for Electronic Course Developers

1. Have you included proper attribution and full citation for short (no more than a few sentences) quotations?
2. Have you referenced sources of information (even if you have not used a direct quote)?
3. Do you have written permission from the copyright holder to use copyrighted material within your online course?
   Note: Copyright protects the expression of ideas in any format, and this applies not only to written passages, but also includes charts, photographs, video clips, etc. Written permission can be via e-mail or by letter. Click here to see sample letter.
4. Have you obtained written permission to convert any material to digital format? Note: The College Access Copyright license does not allow you to convert material to digital format. For example, you cannot copy an article and convert it to a PDF document without obtaining permission from the publisher. You cannot scan an image and include it in your course without obtaining permission.
5. Have you read the conditions of use statement on the websites that you link to?
   Note: Linking to other sites is an accepted and common online practice; however, Web etiquette suggests identifying the source of deep linked articles, possibly by providing a link to the mainpage of a site.
6. Do you have written permission from the website owner to include any content from their site within your course?
7. Have you remembered to keep a copy of your permission letters?

Digital Materials Accompanying Textbooks

CDs which accompany textbooks may be used for the purposes the publisher intended. Uses will vary from publisher to publisher. The permissibility of putting commercial, publisher-created content up on a course website will depend on a number of conditions. If the content is designed for such use; for example, on a Blackboard / WebCT course site, then the publisher may have already explicitly granted permission. If permission is not granted upfront by the publisher, contact the publisher prior to putting such content on a course site.

Click here for tips on obtaining permissions.

Images

Digitize if:

• The image is your own creation such as a photograph or a drawing. As the creator of the work you are automatically the copyright owner and may use this image as you please.
• The image is in public domain; for example, a "stop" sign or the "Mona Lisa."

• The image you want to use is from a printed source (and not in public domain) such as a book or magazine.
• The image is an original photograph.
• Obtaining digital permission to use a photograph could cost hundreds of dollars. It is often easier and cheaper to create your own images or to use freely available images in the public domain.
• You found the image on the internet.
• Much content on the internet is already infringing copyright and the fact that someone else has used an image (with or without permission) does not mean that you may also. However, you may use free clip art.

Linking to Articles in MacEwan Library Subscription Databases

The Library subscription databases provide an excellent source of material that ranges from newspaper, magazine and journal articles to collections of art images. Rather than posting content that requires permission on Blackboard, see if the material is available in the database and provide a link to it instead. Most of the databases allow for linking from a Blackboard site, however check the conditions attached to individual databases as well as any conditions attached to individual articles to see if there are any use restrictions.

The Library provides a guide to creating persistent links to database content. Contact Sonya Betz, Library Reference Services, betzs3@macewan.ca for direct linking assistance.

Linking to Websites

Often the best option is to provide links to web content rather than post the content on Blackboard. Web etiquette suggests identifying the source of deep linked articles, possibly by providing a link to the mainpage of a site.