Use of work under copyright

If works are still in copyright, do I need to get permission for use in my OU studies (assignments, etc.)?

As a student you may use extracts from works (excluding sound recordings or films) for the purposes of your own personal (and non-commercial) research or private study (Section 29 of Copyright Act). This means you may use these for the purposes of your own study and file those extracts in your personal folder (online or elsewhere) which is not accessible by or made accessible to anyone else. You may also use those extracts for the purposes of answering your assessment questions that are going to be marked by your tutor.

How much can I use for my non-commercial private study or research?

You should use as much as you need, and no more than that. You should also credit the author and source at all times as is usual academic practice.

If you find an article (or anything else) on the web (or anywhere else), which you would like to share with your colleague students (even if for their own non-commercial and personal study), in uploading the article (if still in copyright) without permission from the rights owner and making it available to others the intention falls outside the permission contained in ‘the Act’. The intention contained in ‘the Act’ is for you to use extracts etc only for your own personal study (personal study does not extend to you copying and making content available to others).

However, you could pass on some information to your colleague students. For example you could let them know where you found an article (by providing the URL, or book details) as long as you don’t ask them to copy or pass the article to others. There is no copyright in passing on information.

Linking to external websites

Please ensure any linking to external websites is appropriate to your course of study at the OU, and acknowledge and reference appropriately.