Copyright limitations in distance learning education
Kakoura, Antonia
This dissertation was written as part of the MA in Art, Law and Economy at the International Hellenic University. The starting point of the present study is the realization that distance education can play a very important role in disseminating knowledge. New technologies nowadays enable learning process to “escape” the boundaries of the physical classroom and spread even in the most inaccessible areas. However, it should be pointed out that capacity without content is actually pointless. During the teaching process, the teacher usually uses copyright protected works. The fact that these original works are legally protected means that the user-teacher should request permission for their use. Of course, several European countries have provided for exceptions allowing educational institutions to use these works without authorization from the rightholder and in some cases without the obligation of a fee. Consequently, the teacher should either seek license from the copyright owner or rely on the domestic exceptions and limitations for educational purposes. However, this is not always an easy task since it is questionable whether the teaching exceptions (as provided in each Member State) covers all the uses of the original works and more precisely whether the exceptions provided for analogue uses do cover the digital uses in distance learning education as well. The aim of this paper is to present the exceptions and limitations for teaching purposes and examine how and to what extent the teaching exceptions provided for the analogue uses are also applicable to the digital distance education in the majority of the Member States. The study also considers the degree of harmonization between the Member States in the certain field and cites certain suggestions on how we could face the legal uncertainty on the online use of copyright protected educational materials within the internal market.
