Copyright Licences

A copyright licence allows the holder to copy or broadcast copyrighted material covered by the licence without having to seek specific permission, provided you stick to the limits prescribed by the licence.

Ulster University holds four different copyright licences. The two main ones are the CLA licence and the ERA licence. The CLA licence covers books and e-books owned by the Library, whilst the ERA licence covers material broadcasted on radio or TV. We also hold the NLA licence for extracts from newspapers and the PPL PRS licence for music.

• Most books published by UK publishers are covered by the CLA licence and many published elsewhere are covered by reciprocal agreements between the CLA and its international partners. The CLA maintains a licence checking tool allowing you to determine if a given book is covered by the licence.

• The licence allows you to scan or photocopy up to 10% of a book or one chapter, whichever is greater.

• The licence now allows you to scan up to 10% of a journal issue or two articles, whichever is greater. Where a whole issue is devoted to a particular theme the entire issue may be copied. The CLA is currently producing guidelines on what constitutes a particular theme and this guidance will be updated to take account of this once it is made available.

• The Library’s Scanning Service can carry out scanning for academic staff intending to use the scan as part of their teaching. As part of this service, they will check that the work is covered by the CLA licence. Contact your subject librarian to arrange this.

• If you require more than 10% of a book or more than one chapter, it may be possible to purchase a Second Extract permission, which allows the copying of an additional 10% or an additional chapter. This can be arranged via the Scanning Service.

• If the Library does not own a copy of the item you want scanned or photocopied, the Document Delivery Service may be able to secure a Copyright Fee Paid copy from the British Library which can be scanned from. Contact your subject librarian to arrange this.

• The ERA licence covers most free-to-air TV channels and many radio channels (including the BBC.) A full list of ERA member organisations is available on their website.

• The licence allows us to make recordings or copies of TV and radio programmes for educational use. It also allows access to on-demand services and podcasts produced by ERA members.

• Only students and employees of Ulster University are covered by our licence. If you wish to show broadcasts at events attended by members of the public, the rights to do this must be negotiated separately.

• The ERA licence underpins the Box of Broadcasts service.

• The licence does not cover films or broadcasts by non-member organisations, but it may be possible to show this for educational purposes using a copyright exception. Contact the Copyright Officer is you have questions about this.

• Students based outside the UK are not covered by the basic ERA licence. If you have students based outside the UK and wish to show them recorded broadcasts in your teaching, contact the Copyright Officer to discuss options.

• The NLA licence is administered by the CLA and allows extracts from national and regional newspapers to be included in course materials, including by uploading copies to Blackboard.

• You can also link to articles produced by non-NLA members without infringing copyright and it may be possible to reproduce sections of such articles under copyright exceptions. Contact the Copyright Officer if you are unsure if your proposed use is permitted.

The PPL PRS licence governs the use of copyrighted music on campus (including live performances) and in teaching. It is administered by Campus Life and queries about it should be directed to them.