Copyright and Fair Use

ASUCD Copyright and Fair Use in bold black text. Background includes abstract colorful geometric shapes in the corners.

Copyright and Fair Use

Users of social media should be conscientious about the content they post and share in these mediums to avoid infringing upon a copyright owner’s intellectual property rights. Pursuant to the Title 17 of the United States Code (the “U.S. Copyright Act”), a copyright owner has the exclusive right to do and authorize the reproduction of copyrighted work; reproduce copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; and to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work. Further, a copyright owner has the exclusive right to do and authorize the performance of the copyrighted work publicly with respect to literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works; to display the copyrighted work publicly with respect to literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work; and to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission with respect to sound recordings. See Title 17 U.S.C. § 106.

Who Owns Copyright

The universe of possible copyright owners is too expansive and varied to list. However, common examples include Authors, Publishers, Photographers, Composers, Musicians, Choreographers, Videographers, Painters, Sculptors, Programmers, and Actors.

What Constitutes Fair Use

The “Fair Use Doctrine” is a limitation on exclusive rights of copyright owners pursuant to the U.S. Copyright Act. The doctrine is the progeny of numerous court decisions and is codified in Section 107 of the Copyright Act. Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act states: Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include: (1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; (2) the nature of the copyrighted work; (3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and (4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. Section 7 of the U.S. Copyright Act is a reflection of the difficulty in formulating an exact definition of “fair use”. The factors are a set of criteria used by Courts to balance the equities of particular circumstances of the use to gauge whether the Fair Use Doctrine applies, i.e. - whether the particular use falls with the paradigm of fair use or constitutes copyright infringement. Determining whether a use is “fair use” may be difficult and Social Media users obtain written permission from the copyright owner to use copyrighted material when they are unsure that the use would constitute fair use. More information about what constitutes fair use may be obtained on the United States Copyright Office website.

Implications of Posting Content on Social Media Channels

When you post content to social media sites such as Facebook, X, LinkedIn, YouTube or Instagram, under the terms of their respective service agreements, you are automatically granting them a license – commonly known as an intellectual property (or IP) license – to use this content. Although the specific language of these agreements varies from platform to platform, IP licenses are similar in that you typically are granting the sites permission to share your content all over the world without having to gain further approval from you and without having to pay you any royalties. Some platforms also reserve the right to change, commercialize, publicly perform, or display your posted materials without express permission or compensation. Also worth noting are the provisions that govern the license period. Some service agreements expressly state that you are granting them a perpetual IP license, while others indicate that your IP license ends when you delete your content or terminate your social media account, unless the content has been shared with others who have not deleted it. In both instances the net result is the same: The social media platform owns a license to use our posted content, for whatever purpose, in perpetuity.

Other Guidelines

Respect Intellectual Property Laws

  • Being inspired by other organizations or companies is alright, but refrain from directly copying their copy, campaign, and content.
  • Use stock photos/royalty-free content when applicable. 
  • Logos or marks that identify UC Davis units must conform to campus logo signature standards outlined in the Brand Communications Guide. Non-standard logos require review and approval from the Assistant Director of Marketing Strategic Communications.

Endorsements

  • Sponsors/Donations
    • If applicable, be sure to highlight your event/unit sponsor on social media. 
  • External Products
    • Products not involved with the ASUCD unit, not affiliated with a sponsorship deal and are external to UC Davis, should not be endorsed on ASUCD social media channels. 
      • Ex: ✔️Advertising a new drink at the CoHo. 
      • Ex: ❌Consistently advertising for Dutch Bros when they have a new drink. 
  • UC Davis Organizations External of ASUCD
    • This is encouraged, as ASUCD connects the dots on campus, but ensures that the majority of your content and sharing is aimed at furthering your organization and that of ASUCD’s.