Copyright Friendly Resources: About Copyright Friendly Permissions

In the U.S., there are three main ways to determine if you can use someone else's work without their explicit/written permission.*

1. The work is in the "Public Domain"
2. Your use of the work falls under the "Fair Use" doctrine of U.S. Copyright Law
3. The author has explicitly defined the rights of use through "Creative Commons Licensing"

Works in the "Public Domain" are not protected by copyright law and are free for you to use without permission.* 

In the U.S., works can enter the Public Domain in a number of ways, including when protection expires as set by law, and/or if the right's holder explicitly gives the work to the public without copyright protection. In some instances, works are not protected by copyright to begin with and therefore fall into the public domain (this includes things such as facts, U.S. Government publications, short phrases, etc.)

The Fair Use doctrine in U.S. Copyright Law.

Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered fair, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair:

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of 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
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work