Posting an item to Electronic Course Network (ECN) does not exempt an instructor from copyright regulations. Therefore, instructors are encouraged to follow copyright "best practices." In order of preference, these include:
Please see the following chart for additional recommendations:
| Item | Allowed | Not allowed |
| Web site containing copyrighted material | Link to the web site via ECN | Copying and pasting the information into ECN |
| Copyrighted web image | Must be educational in nature; can be displayed in ECN for several semesters (new as of verdict in GSU copyright case) | Indefinite use |
| Article from a library database | Direct linking to article allowed | Copying and pasting the article into ECN |
| Scanned copyrighted image | Must be educational in nature; display in ECN for one semester | Repeated use over multiple semesters |
| Scanned chapter from a book |
about 10% of the book is allowed |
More than the allotted percent, especially for significant periods of time |
| Scanned article from a journal, trade publication, or magazine | A single article for several semesters (new as of verdict in GSU copyright case) | Multiple articles from the same publication and/or repeated use over multiple semesters |
| Audio files | No more than 30 seconds without permission | Repeated use over multiple semesters |
| Video files | 10% or three minutes, whichever is less |
Repeated use over multiple semesters |
(Please note that these are suggested guidelines based on one interpretation of the U.S. Copyright Law. If in doubt, it is always advisable to err on the side of caution and complete a Fair Use Evaluation.)
Worried about going beyond what is suggested by Fair Use? Click here to learn how to Ask Permissions of publishers.