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Adhere to copyright rules at all times. A precautionary approach is recommended since copyright laws are not always clear. The principles set out below should help you:
THE BASICS
- Words and terms in themselves are not subject to copyright. Copying and entering a term in IATE and indicating its source is fine. However, a term collection can be considered as a database, which in some cases are protected. Copying significant quantities of terms from the same source may infringe this right and may conflict with the rightholder’s own (economic) exploitation of the resource.
- Always check the legal notice (sometimes called copyright notice, copyright clause or disclaimer). In published sources, you can find this information, as a rule, on the back of the title page, in the foreword or even on the back page. On the Internet, there is usually a legal notice on the home page, but check for a specific legal notice on the page from which you want to copy.
- Material in the public domain is freely available for use, i.e. most material published by public bodies and, generally speaking, any material published more than 70 years ago (from the death of the author, from the publication etc.), but check the legal notice.
- Writings and other works by EU staff belong to the EU so can be reproduced in IATE without restrictions. But the work is protected by copyright so should not be shared with third parties without permission.
- If you re-write or summarise information from a third party source, a new work is created which belongs to the EU. But you should indicate that your text is ‘based on: […]’. See Types of References > Human Sources.
- Text protected by copyright can, in principle, not be copied without the authorisation of the rightholder. You can quote parts of a sentence unless the quoted text has a specific importance, for example the key part of an ISO definition. Be careful and use the three-step test explained below.
- Copyright law is established on a national level. Generally, the copyright laws of Belgium or Luxembourg apply to our work. These laws are quite restrictive. Do not rely on exceptions established in other jurisdictions (for example, the fair dealings exception applicable in the UK and the fair use exception applicable in the US) without consulting a lawyer.
IN PRACTICE
- Where possible, draft your own material.
- Use material free from copyright restrictions (in the public domain, or available under a Creative Commons licence or any other licence; read the licence).
- Use primary references rather than secondary sources (which may have been created without proper authorisation from rightholders).
- Check the legal notice and heed any restrictions established therein.
- Remember graphics and photos are subject to the same copyright restrictions as text.
- When quoting, keep the length to a minimum and clearly identify the source.
- Avoid using the same source extensively, or, if you must, obtain written permission from the rightholder (do not enter the text in IATE before you have obtained permission).
- Be careful with words or abbreviations that form a trademark (e.g. UFED – Universal Forensic Extraction Device; HDMI – High Definition Multimedia Interface). Reproducing trademarks in IATE entries is subject to restrictions and must not give the impression that the trademark is the generic name of the goods or services for which the trademark is registered. It should always be accompanied by any indication used by the owner of the trademark (™ for unregistered trademark and ® for a registered trademark). You can use the following shortcuts: ™ is + Numlock + 0153, and ® is + Numlock + 0174. Add the term without the sign as a lookup form. Use links to the trademark owner’s website, if needed.
THE ‘THREE-STEP TEST’ FOR QUOTATIONS
It is not possible to specify concretely when and how much of a work you are allowed to quote without risking copyright infringement. The rules on quotation vary from country to country. Most countries do not establish precise limits on what is acceptable, leaving it to the courts to examine matters on a case-by-case basis. The courts follow the so called three-step test, which can also be a guide for you:
- There must be a legal basis for the reproduction in the specific case.
- The reproduction must not conflict with the normal exploitation of the work.
- The reproduction must not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interest of the rightholder or author.
If in doubt, check with a lawyer, or ask the rightholder for written authorisation.