There are several different sections of the Copyright Act that may be relevant to you as a student.
You own the copyright to material you create as a student. This won't apply if you have been commissioned or funded by an external agent to create the work.
Under Fair Dealing provisions, you can copy an insubstantial part of a work. What is considered substantial depends on the material you are copying. E.g., you couldn't copy a small, but unique part of a poem. For more information about Fair Dealing, see the Copyright Council of New Zealand handout.
As a student you can use some media in certain circumstances. For example, you can make a handwritten copy of a literary work for educational purposes. For more information about what you can copy for educational purposes, see the Copyright Council of New Zealand handout.
There are also copyright provisions for photographers, visual artists, writers, songwriters and composers.
You must always acknowledge where you obtained information from, e.g. by creating an APA reference.
What can I do?
For the purposes of research or private study, Wintec students may do the following:
Copy from books
Up to one chapter or 10%, whichever is greater (even if the majority of it is pictures). You CANNOT copy the whole book.
Copy from journals/magazines
One article per issue.
Copy from newspapers
One article per issue.
Copy from theses
Copyright is owned by the Thesis author. You need to obtain permission before copying.
Videos, DVDs & music
Section 43 of the Copyright Act permits "Fair Dealing" for research or private study.
For study purposes you may use 30 seconds of a commercial video, as long as you don't alter it.
Note: You can't share electronically with another person or make multiple copies.
What about file sharing?
You cannot upload, or download, material from the Internet using an application or network that enables sharing of material between multiple users. For more information about file sharing, see the Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011, or the Copyright Council of New Zealand handout.
Can I copy from the Internet?
Unless otherwise state, you should assume that all material on the Internet is protected by copyright law. However, if the material displays a Creative Commons or other license (e.g. royalty free), you can use the material within the conditions specified by that license. Remember to acknowledge the source.
Items in the public domain
“Public domain” refers to material for which all copyright has expired. You can use this material but must always acknowledge the source. For more info about public domain items, check out this guide.
Attribution
Whenever you are using the ideas of others, you must acknowledge the source. Attributing or acknowledging the source of the information is done by referencing in APA style.
Failure to properly acknowledge/attribute is considered plagiarism. Plagiarism from print or online material is unacceptable at Wintec and can result in penalties or disciplinary action. Tutors in your school may use the plagiarism software Turnitin to check referencing and plagiarism.
What can't I do?
Further information
For more information, see the links below.