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n weighing the balance at the heart of fair use analysis, judges refer to four types of considerations mentioned in the law: the nature of the use, the nature of the work used, the extent of the use and its economic effect. This still leaves much room for interpretation, especially since the law is clear that these are not the only necessary considerations. In reviewing the history of fair use litigation, we find that judges return again and again to two key questions: Did the unlicensed use "transform" the material taken from the copyrighted work by using it for a different purpose than that of the original, or did it just repeat the work for the same intent and value as the original? Was the material taken appropriate in kind and amount, considering the nature of the copyrighted work and of the use? Both questions touch on, among other things, the question of whether the use will cause excessive economic harm to the copyright owner. If the answers to these two questions are "yes," a court is likely to find a use fair. Because that is true, such a use is unlikely to be challenged in the first place.

"Such misconceptions about fair use are all too common - and many journalists fear delving into fair use's complexities, just wanting to know enough to keep from getting sued. Today, American University Center of Social Media is releasing a new set of tools that seek to help demystify fair use for journalists - and to help publishers see how this doctrine actually can help online reporting instead of hampering it."

Free use vs. Fair Use

Using copyrighted material in your video