Intellectual Property and Copyright

Copyright infringement notices

Companies representing copyright owners may contact a school alleging that the school has infringed copyright. Often the notice relates to an image the school has sourced online and used publicly, for example, on its website, in its library catalogue or school newsletter. Infringement notices could relate to other forms of copyright material, such as a poem or news article, if the material has been put on the school website.

Responding to a copyright infringement notice

1. Immediately remove the material. For example, remove the image from the school website or take down the newsletter that has the image. Remember to record the date and time that the material was taken down. Consider where else the material may have been used and take steps to stop those uses.

2. Do not respond directly to the infringement notice. Notify the department’s copyright team and contact the National Copyright Unit for advice on how to respond.

   The department’s copyright team is responsible for IP and copyright policy and the schools’ education licences. It is required to track schools’ infringement notices and should be notified if your school receives one. It can also help you liaise with the National Copyright Unit and other parties if you request.

   The National Copyright Unit is the specialist copyright legal team responsible for national copyright policy and administration for Australian schools. It advises and supports schools, state and territory education departments, the Commonwealth government and the Catholic and Independent school sectors.

   Notify the department’s copyright team:

   • email copyright@education.vic.gov.au
   • phone 03 7022 0507

   Contact the National Copyright Unit:

   • email smartcopying@det.nsw.edu.au
   • phone 02 7814 3855
3. Provide the National Copyright Unit with the following information:
   • a copy of the copyright infringement notice
   • details about the material that is the subject of the notice
   • the date and time that the material was removed or taken down
   • any other relevant information. For example, if you know the material was used with permission from the copyright owner, under a Creative Commons (CC) licence, or an education exception or licence.
4. The National Copyright Unit will assess the facts. It will provide your school with advice on how to respond to the notice and what other steps should be taken.

Protect your school from receiving a copyright infringement notice

To minimise the risk of copyright infringement, schools must not put images or other copyright material on their public websites unless:

• the school (or its administrating body) owns copyright in the material
• it has been used with permission from the copyright owner
• it is being used under a Creative Commons licence (refer to 'Use Creative Commons images' below).

It is recommended that schools routinely review their public-facing content and remove images or other copyright material that does not fall into the 3 categories above.

If you have any questions about this process or are unsure if your school has permission to use an image or other copyright material, contact the National Copyright Unit or the department’s copyright team.

Use Creative Commons images

Creative Commons licensed images are truly ‘free’ to use and share. There are plenty of Creative Commons images available to meet schools’ needs for newsletters or public websites. The Smartcopying website has information on finding and using Creative Commons images.

Do not use images from stock image libraries, social media sites, or other internet sites unless they are available under a Creative Commons licence.

For more information, refer to: Stock image libraries and images from the internet – what am I allowed to do?

Attribute or label images

It is important to attribute or label all images to make ownership clear, whether copyright belongs to the school (or its administering body), or the image has been used with permission or a Creative Commons licence.

Your school may have used a Creative Commons image without properly attributing it. It is a requirement of Creative Commons licences that the copyright owner is attributed. A good rule of thumb is to follow the acronym TASL, that is: Title, Author, Source and Licence.

For more information, refer to: How to attribute Creative Commons licensed materials.

Using book covers

School libraries are covered by an agreement between the Australian Publishers Association and the Australian Libraries and Information Association known as the Book Covers Agreement.

Under this agreement, school libraries can use book covers to publicly promote Australian books in their library displays, catalogues, bookmarks, school newsletters, marketing materials, and on websites and social media platforms such as Facebook or Instagram.

This means that school libraries do not need to request permission or provide payment to use the book covers of Australian books.

For more information, refer to: Using book covers.