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Fair Use in the Real World
2:32All right, so we understand fair use a lot better now. What next? Is fair use ever going to be something you need to worry about?
Okay, I know fair use is sort of a vague concept,
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but it's intended to be.
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There's no simple checklist for any sort of usage of stuff that's still under copyright.
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Every situation is totally different.
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If you're concerned about a specific situation of your own, definitely talk to a lawyer.
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But ultimately fair use isn't anything more than a defense.
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It isn't something you sign up for and get approval for.
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It's really only a legal defense if the copyright holder takes you to court.
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Even if your lawyer tells you in advance that "sure whatever you're doing is probably fair use",
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if that case ever got taken to court, the judge might disagree.
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So what does this mean for you?
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Well for starters, no matter what sort of artist you are—
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web designer, musician, anything—
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you should probably just get the idea of anything you do falling under fair use out of your head.
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Not because you should be scared of getting sued or fined, that's really way more rare than you think it is.
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But unless you're specifically creating educational content and following each of those guidelines,
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don't plan on incorporating anyone else's work into your own unless you've properly licensed it.
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If you license whatever you're using, you don't have to worry about fair use at all.
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We're going to talk more about licensing in just a moment.
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But never assume that just because you're not planning on making any money from that website you're building
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or because your iPhone app is free
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that doesn't mean that you're going to be able to claim fair use
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when the owner of those stock photos or icons or whatever else you're using contacts you demanding payment.
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But fair use also means that you should be prepared for your original creative work, no matter what it is,
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to potentially be used in educational settings or news stories or whatever it might be.
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Just because someone didn't get your permission, didn't license what you made,
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it doesn't automatically make their usage of it infringing.
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They might genuinely be using what you've created fairly and for educational use.
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Understanding fair use, as much as anyone can understand it, is an important part of creating art of any kind.
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So remember those four requirements:
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the purpose of the use,
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the nature of the work,
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the amount used,
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and the effect of the use.
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Purpose, nature, amount, effect.
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Fair use. [double thumbs up]
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