Much of the published information we read on a daily basis is protected by copyright law.   In general, publications are protected according to these rules:

1. Any work published before 1923 is in the public domain
2. Works published between 1923-1978 are protected for 95 years from date of publication
3. Works written (published or not) after 1978 are protected until 70 years after the author dies

A new UT System subscription to the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) makes it much easier for M.D. Anderson faculty to use copyrighted materials in their courses.  The CCC Annual Academic License enables faculty to comply with copyright law when distributing published content to students through online and print coursepacks or through course management systems such as Blackboard and Sakai.

For a comprehensive overview of copyright, visit the Campus Guide to Copyright Compliance from the Copyright Clearance Center: http://www.copyright.com/Services/copyrightoncampus/basics/index.html

For questions about fair use and copyright, please contact the librarians at the Research Medical Library by email at RML-Help@mdanderson.org.