Staying On Top of Copyright Rules

“Can you copy these four pages out of this book for me?  ”More importantly, does everyone at your front desk know the right answer?

U.S. copyright law is remarkably strict!

Making a single copy of a copyrighted work without authorization of the copyright owner can get you in trouble, even if you believed that the work wasn’t protected or thought that you had permission of the copyright owner.

Penalties can be severe and can include lost profits, damage claims up to $150,000, attorney’s fees, and more.

Knowing what you can do and what you can’t with copyrighted material is a serious legal issue, and anyone in your business who comes into contact with customers should know the basics.

Luckily, it’s easy to educate them.

The PEiR Group has posted training material on copyright issues on the PEiR Group's intranet. To find these documents visit the members resources area under best practices library:  sales/tech/prod/ .

In the materials, you’ll find information on how to protect yourselves from liability issues, what circumstances require a written release from liability, as well as useful documents to have within reach when customers come to the counter with a magazine, book or photo in hand.