Obtain Copyright Permission

It is important to remember that you do not need to seek copyright permissions if the work in question is not an original creative work, is already in the public domain, or if the way you intend to use the work does not infringe the exclusive rights of the copyright holder or fall’s under the category of Fair Use

Since what is considered “Fair Use” is determined on a case by case basis, you may wish to obtain written permission from the rights holder to remove ambiguity, and you should maintain documentation of the process.

To obtain permission to use excerpts from books, periodicals, music, photographs and motion pictures, the links below will be useful. You may also contact the author and/or owner directly, although it's important to realize that the author may not be the copyright owner.

For books or periodicals: Copyright Clearance Center.

For music, contact the record label: Recording Industry Association of America , Broadcast Music Inc., or American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers.

Photographs and images sometimes lack attribution, which can make it difficult to seek permissions. Try a Google Reverse Image Search by clicking on the camera icon in the search bar.

For motion pictures and videos: Motion Picture Licensing Corporation

Permissions Resources

Digital Millennium Copyright Act and CU Boulder: Termination Policy for Infringement

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act amends federal copyright law to provide certain liability protections for online service providers, including the University of Colorado Boulder, when their computer systems or networks carry materials that violate copyright law. If you believe your copyright has been infringed on a website hosted by the university, email DMCA-agent@cu.edu.

Send other reports of computer abuse to abuse@Colorado.EDU

For more information on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, visit the United States Copyright Office website.