Copyright and Scholarship

Boston College Libraries' policies for obtaining public performance rights for audiovisual material used in the classrooms are:

In-Person Classroom Instruction

Audiovisual materials on DVD owned by the Library may be used in classrooms as part of regular in-person instruction without seeking the copyright owner's permission for performance or display. These permissions extend to Library-licensed streaming services. For further instructions on linking and embedding audiovisual materials in Canvas, please consult our guide.

Streaming media from services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon are not covered by these same policies and the use of such media may be a violation of copyright. For questions about using non-Library streaming video in classes, contact the Library copyright group (copyright-ggroup@bc.edu).

Use by Groups or Clubs

Clubs and other groups who wish to use audiovisual materials in classrooms must first obtain public performance rights for those materials from the copyright owner, unless those rights were purchased along with the materials -- often the case with institutional purchases from educational vendors (e.g. Films for the Humanities & Sciences).

Get Help

Individuals and groups can find assistance obtaining public performance rights by contacting Media Technology Services’ Film Rental Specialist at 617-552-3242.

Media Technology Services classroom support can provide assistance with arrangements for screening equipment in classrooms.

For assistance with digitization services and DVD pickup, contact the Library reserves/media staff.

It is imperative to understand the difference between legal downloads and illegal file sharing.  In the peer-to-peer file sharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work without authority constitutes an infringement. Although there are exceptions under the law that allow copying or distribution of protected works, the use of peer-to-peer (P2P) software programs to download or upload copyrighted music and movies without permission of the copyright owner would virtually never qualify for an exception. Criminal and civil penalties may result from copyright violation, in addition to disciplinary action by Boston College.  

Boston College Technological and Information Resources Use Agreement 

Here are some common examples of copyright infringement:

• Joining a file sharing network and downloading unauthorized copies of copyrighted music for free.
• Sharing unauthorized MP3 copies of a song on the Internet or through a file-sharing network.
• Sharing copies of a copyrighted song with your friends through email, messaging or by giving them copies on burned CDs or flashdrives.

Do not install P2P file sharing software on your computer.

• P2P applications will search for and share content on your computer with others. P2P applications usually run as soon as you turn on your computer and continue to run in the background. Even if you disable uploading, many P2P programs may reset preferences to resume uploading.
• The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and other content owners use the same P2P software to catch file sharers sharing their protected content with others. Content owners specifically target illegal file sharing on university networks.