Copyright in Teaching & Learning at HKAPA: Using Online Resources in Teaching

Instructors are encouraged to make use of the Library subscribed electronic resources in their teaching.  They are welcome to embed the hyperlinks of those resources in their Canvas course pages, which allow instant online retrieval of the required materials by students.

Under the Hong Kong Copyright Ordinance (Cap. 528 s. 43), presenting, playing or showing of copyrighted works in the following manners is not considered an infringement of copyright:
 

• “The performance of a literary, dramatic or musical work before an audience consisting wholly or mainly of teachers and pupils at an educational establishment, parents or guardians of pupils at the establishment, and other persons directly connected with the activities of the establishment … for the purpose of instruction”
• “The playing or showing of a sound recording, film, broadcast or cable programme before such audience at an educational establishment for the purposes of giving or receiving instruction”
   

For playing or showing of a sound recording, film, broadcast or cable programme in public or for any other purposes, users are advised to request the prior permission or consent from the copyright owners.  Some of the materials may require further license from the licensing bodies. Users can refer to the Copyright Licensing Bodies Registry maintained by the Intellectual Property Department.

It is not infringing the copyright for instructors to upload a portion of copyright work for online access within the campus network for teaching purpose. In doing so, instructors should take the following measures:
 

1. adopt appropriate security measures (such as requiring login user name and password) so that access to the work would be restricted to the users who need to use it for teaching or learning in a specified course of study and persons who need to maintain or manage the network;
    
2. ensure that the work is only stored for a period of time which is just long enough for the intended teaching or learning purpose. In any event, 12 months is the maximum duration allowed.
    

Where an educational establishment has adopted the above measures, it is still necessary for teachers and students to deal with the copyright work in a “fair” manner in order to enjoy the “fair dealing” exemption.
 

Source of information: Intellectual Property Department’s FAQ on Copyright (Amendment) Ordinance 2007

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