Copyright Permission In The Digital Age

Quantitative guidelines are popular and well-used because many people lack the experience needed for good judgment. None of these guidelines has the force of law, but they can help us to decide whether our uses of materials found on the Internet are likely to be defensible as fair.

Fair use is often possible as a defense for educational use. The statute is purposefully vague; its flexibility is valuable. The DMCA did not alter the fair use statute. Fair use will be lost if we stop applying its principles to defend our educational uses.