Copyright Information/Film Viewing

Rights for Student Organizations to Show Videos in a Public Setting

Students, staff, and faculty may seek to show a video for groups, clubs, and other campus organizations. Outside of a classroom setting, to avoid possible copyright violations either the video must be in the public domain or public licensed, or Public Performance Rights (PPR) have been acquired. Public Performance Rights are the legal rights held by distributors or producers over the showing of a video outside of one’s home.

For all non-classroom screened media, individuals and organizations are responsible for obtaining and providing proof of either PPR or that the media is in the public domain or public-licensed. It is important to obtain the proper permission to avoid the risk of violating copyright. The event may be scheduled once the PPR is shared with the Law Events office.

Please note, video available on YouTube, Vimeo, and free or for-fee streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, etc.) still require proof of either PPR or that the video is in the public domain or public-licensed.

Sources of PPR

Companies to Contact

• Swank Motion Pictures, Inc.
  http://www.swank.com/
• Criterion Pictures, Inc.
  http://www.criterionpicusa.com/
• Kino
  https://www.kinolorberedu.com/terms
• Motion Picture Licensing Corporation
  http://www.mplc.org

Direct Permission

• You may wish or need to contact the producer or distributor directly. They may provide PPR at no cost.

Netflix

• For selected videos, Netflix provides automatic grants of permission for their nonprofit, non-commercial showing.
  Policy: https://help.netflix.com/en/node/57695
  List: https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix#/all?page=1 (click on Category twice to relatively quickly get to all documentaries available for screenings)

Public Domain and Public Licensed

• Resources for determining the public domain status of a work and for finding public licensed works: https://guides.lib.umich.edu/videocopyright/nopermission

Streaming Video Over Zoom

Streaming of copyrighted video to student groups or the public over Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, FaceTime, etc. requires PPR. Note: PPR are often limited to in-person viewing. Clear permission to stream via these services should be provided.

Further Resources

• Michigan Guide to Copyright and Using Video
  https://guides.lib.umich.edu/videocopyright/overview
• Texas Libraries Copyright & Fair Use: Media in the Classroom
  https://libguides.uta.edu/copyright/media

Groups must provide the Law School Events office with either proof of performance rights or evidence that the media is in the public domain or public licensed before an event space may be reserved.