Many pedagogical and technical issues make the shift from in-person to online teaching challenging. This guide is intended to help address common copyright questions that may arise. Although this guide was created in response to COVID-19 and the resulting rapid transition of courses from in-person to online, the information below is applicable to any course transitioning online at any time.
Remember: Always take accessibility needs into account. Copyright law does not preclude creating transcripts or captions for course videos and audio. In fact, it normally allows for it. See Fondren’s Accessibility Tips.
This guide was adapted with modifications from “Copyright Considerations for the Harvard Community in Shifting Courses from In-Person to Online During the COVID-19 Crisis” by the Copyright First Responders, Harvard Library Office for Scholarly Communication, and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License.
This guide was created for information purposes only. It does not provide legal advice, nor is it intended to replace the advice of legal counsel.