The rest of the universities in the UT System now have the same copyright licensing privileges as UT-Austin, making it one of the largest higher education systems in the U.S. to have those rights.
The nine academic and six health institutions adopted the Copyright Clearance Center’s Annual Copyright License.
With these credentials, professors and students are now able to use published materials as classroom aids, including course packets, e-reserves and research collaboration.
Individuals with pre-approved permission, such as librarians and faculty, will be able to share content from various kinds of media including books, journals, newspapers, magazines and e-books.
UT-Austin signed the annual copyright license last June and the results have led to the expansion to the entire system.
“We are adding to the resource of authority by expanding this licence to other UT institutions,” said Georgia Harper, UT scholarly communications advisor.
This change affects more than 150,000 students and nearly 13,000 faculty members in the UT System.
“The UT system is looking to benefit our students and staff by providing easier access to a large expanding library of academic works,” said Barry Burgdorf, vice chancellor and general counsel of the UT System.
“The Annual Copyright License will help the faculty members feel more comfortable using different materials in their lessons,” said Harper. “This license will make course materials more available to students and faculty with minimal difficulties.”
The copyright center introduced the annual license in 2007 to reduce the costs of searching and obtaining copyright permissions for academic institutions.
It also aimed to broaden awareness of intellectual property on campuses. Since its launch, dozens of colleges and universities have adopted the license, including the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Middlebury College, Marquette University Law School and the United States Army Command & General Staff College, according to the license’s Web site.
Bob Weiner, senior vice president at the licensing service, said the license will save time and money for the UT System in a press release.
“We are extremely pleased that the University of Texas System has chosen to expand its implementation of the Annual Copyright License throughout the entire UT system,” Weiner said.
The University of Texas Press, the University’s book publishing service, has benefited from the copyright license by being able to use copyrighted material without fear of infringement.
UT-Austin has experienced success with the license in the past year, and officials expect other UT institutions to see similar results, said Laura Bost of the Rights and Permissions division of the UT Press.
“Using this copyright license has streamlined the process for people at UT to use permissioned material,” Bost said.
Be the first to comment on this article!