Understanding Copyright - A Life Skill

• Author: Lesley Ellen Harris
• Position: Copyright lawyer, author and educator
• Pages: 5-8

p. 5WIPO | MAGAZINE

Once the preserve of spe cialists, copyright has bec ome a

mainstream issue, and unde rstanding how it works is an

increasingly necessary life skill. In the online world, consum-

ers come face to face with copyri ght law, but many remain

confused and unsure abo ut what they may or may not legally

do. The growing number of law school s that offer courses on

intellectual proper ty (IP) are helping to ll gaps in co pyright

knowledge, but there is still a gre at deal to be done to bring

the public up to speed on copyri ght issues.

With widely available techno logies that make it easy to download

and copy creative content, and amid esc alating rates of online

piracy, there is growing interest in copyright educ ation. This

means teaching consume rs of creative content about the full

implications of illegal co pying as well as how to avoid infringing

creators’ rights and interests. It is about und erlining the fact

that although the way we listen to music, watch movies and

read books has changed dr amatically, the time, effort and skill

involved in producing creative content rem ains more or less

unchanged. Copyright edu cation offers a steady and sure

means of building under standing and respect for creators’ rights.

SCHOOLING ACCIDENTAL PIRATES

Research under taken by Australia’s Intellectual Propert y

Awareness Foundation (IPAF) in 2011 reveals a high level of

confusion among the general public about what constitutes

piracy. Many are “blissfully unaware” that by download ing,

burning or sharing movi es or TV programs they a re fuelling

piracy. IPAF estimates that as many as one in three Austra-

lians are “accidental pirates”. It rmly believes that e ducation

is “the solution to a better unde rstanding of the movie and TV

theft issue” (www.ipawareness.com.au/campaigns). Through

its public education cam paigns, IPAF explains what piracy is,

the harm it causes and why m embers of the public should

stop downloading, copying and buying pirated movies and

TV programs.

A growing number of other campai gns and information re-

sources seek to educate the publi c about the dos and don’ts

of copyright. In November 2011, US Attorney General Eric

Holder announced the launch of a public education campaign

UNDERSTANDING

COPYRIGHT –

A Life Skill

“It’s one of those life skills now, right? When you

graduate from high school or college, you should

know how to read a map, you should know how to

use GPS, you should know a little bit about copyright.

If you are somebody who is going to be in a eld

where you will encounter copyrighted materials all

the time, you should know more. If you’re going to be

an artist or musician and you’re getting a red-hot

degree in the performing arts, you should know a lot.

And I don’t think that’s quite the case - I don’ t think

it’s been built into the curricula.”

Maria Pallan te,

U.S. Regi ster for Copyrig ht

* Ms. Harris is a copy right lawyer, author a nd educator. She

publishes  e Copyright & New Medi a Law Newsletter and

maintains a bl og with copyright a nswers (www.copyri ghtlaws.

com). Her book, Licen sing Digital Conte nt: A Practical Gu ide for

Librarians , Second Edition, i s available from A LA Editions.

By Lesley Ell en Harris*

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