When making collection development decisions related to media for any institution, organization, or association, a central question is whether to include public performance rights within the purchase agreement if the option is available. There are often a number of questions about what public performance rights are and why they would be needed, especially in a non-profit educational setting.
What are public performance rights?
Copyright provides creators with exclusive rights to their works including the public display of their copyrighted work. For this reason, when an institution, organization, or association purchases any media, the ability to publicly display the work is not assumed in the purchase agreement.
While copyright provides the holder with certain exclusive rights, there are exceptions that allow for the use of film or video in front of an audience. This includes educational videos or films played in a classroom setting. Current copyright law (Title 17, United States Code, Section 110(1)) allows for the “performance or display of a work by instructors or pupils in the course of face-to-face teaching activities of a nonprofit educational institution, in a classroom or similar place devoted to instruction.”
Other audiovisual works are also able to be included in the virtual classroom in circumstances where particular public performance use qualifications are met. The exception to this is if the copy of the film or video is not a legally obtained copy.
The purchase of a film or video allows for the use of the content for personal viewing or home use. This would mean the viewing of the film or video in your private home and can include a small group of individuals. Copyrighted movies or video can be used in a classroom or educational setting, and if the work is in the public domain, there are no restrictions on its use set in place by the copyright holder.
Do I need public performance rights?
The need for public performance rights is necessary when using a film or video in a public setting. A public space would include showing a film or video that has been legally purchased or licensed through a streaming service to show to an audience outside of a classroom or for personal viewing. Typically, this would be showing a film or video as part of a campus or school club, during a lecture series or with a guest speaker, or with a community group at a local public library. It is in these cases that viewing a film or video outside of what is considered home use or classroom use that public performance rights are needed.
In some cases, you may already have public performance rights included with your film or video purchase. If you are unsure, the first step would be to review the information that was included with your purchase and with physical films and videos looking at the case for any indication that public performance rights were included. The distributor or vendor website will also include information as to what licenses are included with the purchase. Finally, those interested in publicly showing a film or video can contact the copyright holder, distributor, or vendor to grant public performance rights to an existing purchase.
Many vendors offer perpetual access, which allows you to screen a film an unlimited amount of times. While often more expensive, this method will result in lower cost per use.
When considering the need to include a public performance rights license with the purchase of any media, it is key to think about how the film or video will be shown. In most cases, a public performance rights license is not necessary; however, if the film is intended to be shown to an audience, not in an educational context, it is ideal to obtain the license upfront.
How do I attain a public performance license?
Ultimately, you can always go back to the rights holder and obtain permission for a public performance license. This would typically be the distributor of the film. Our distributor database has the contact information for many of them.
For all types of libraries, it is wise to include any relevant licensing information within the catalog records to ensure everyone knows how a film or video can be used.
Navigating the world of public performance rights can be challenging, but a basic understanding of these copyright restrictions can make your next film screening event run smoother.