Intellectual property law is still alive and well in the social media age despite the free-for-all attitude that many people have about what is available online. Experts at the recent South by Southwest Interactive Festival had a panel discussion about it and explained three important tips for anyone who uses media derived from online sources – even Twitter!
- Be careful with any picture, video or other media, even those that have been widely circulated through Twitter or Facebook. If you use a photo, the best practice is to obtain express permission to use it, and at the very least do not use photos without proper attribution and links at a minimum. Items like this may be covered under Fair Use to be used in school assignments, but even they need to be attributed.
- Don’t just “scrape” content off of online sources. To claim a Fair Use exemption, even for a school assignment, you need to transform most content with your own unique creativity, and thereby avoid unfair competition or copyright violation claims.
- Social media has often been used as a vehicle to make fun of certain people or criticize them. The Fake Steve Jobs blog is a good example of this. Obvious parodies probably are still safe, within reason and good taste, BUT – and kids should know this as this is often a favorite way to get back at a teacher or school administrator – several states, and others have similar laws in the works that have made e-personation , or impersonating another person online, a crime. So, when dealing with criticism or parody of individuals online using the word “Fake” over and over again is one way to keep yourself from getting into trouble.
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