FAQs on Copyright Law
On this list, you will find questions on copyright law which have been frequently asked in the library. The answers are designed to help you to orientate yourself, but do not provide legally-binding information. Please take care to obtain the correct answers for the material type (printed, scanned or copied materials) and the application area (personal or public use). Please also pay attention to the content distinction between the formulations ‘scientific and private purposes’ and ‘own use’.
May copies be made of complete books, CD-ROMS or e-books??
§ 53 UrhG (copyright law) applies. If a CD-ROM contains a complete book, a complete journal or a graphic recording of musical works (sheet music) then the CD-ROM may only be copied in its entirety if this serves its inclusion into a personal archive or if the work has been out of print for a minimum of two years. An ‘essentially complete’ copy of a book or journal is not permitted. ‘Essentially complete’ means that all the significant components and approx. 90% of the content are reproduced, whereby indexes/indices and registers do not count.
What is the maximum amount of a book which can be scanned?
No essentially complete copies may be made of the content of entire books and journals (significantly less than 90%) for scientific and private use. For other personal use, it is only permitted to copy ‘a small part’ of the work (10%) or individual contributions from the magazines or newspapers.
May e-books be printed out?
When printing out entire e-books, the conditions of the e-book licence are decisive. Insofar as the licence does not restrict the rights in accordance with § 53 UrhG (copyright law) or gives the user further rights, the ruling for complete magazines and e-books, as well as sheet music, applies as per the first question of the first point.
May PDF files be stored/saved?
In accordance with § 53 UrhG (for scientific purposes and also other personal use) PDF files for personal use may be stored/saved on any storage medium insofar as the licensing contract has not specified any alternative conditions.
When does the copyright expire for older literature?
70 years after the death of the author.
Is it permitted to send prepared scans of old stocks (book over 100 years old) from the reprographic department by email?
Yes, if the copyright has expired.
May individual ISO standards be copied/printed out on site?
Authorised users (university members, guest lecturers, students) are allowed to copy extracts of norms for scientific purposes from the database using copy and paste and/or may print these out.
Do individual licences, e.g. DIN and VDE (German Association for Electrical, Electronic & Information Technologies) apply to campus members when using the norms, or does the general UrhG (copyright law) apply?
The decisive factors are the conditions of the licence which have been agreed between the norm’s author and his/her publisher. If the author has granted the publisher exclusive usage rights, he/she no longer has any rights. Incidentally, the norms, within the scope of personal use in accordance with § 53 UrhG (copyright law), can be viewed at the repository.
Due to the freedom of this type of document, may patent specifications be saved/stored and shared?
Patent specifications may be freely copied, saved/stored and shared.
