Are classroom lectures intellectual property?

Question

If I record a classroom lecture, and decide to sell it or make profit off it somehow, would this be illegal and could the teacher sue me? Even if I record the lecture in general and distribute it. Bottom line - are lectures intellectual property?

So if I were to record classes and distribute them for educational purposes only or to distribute them to other members of the class would this be OK? Even without consent of the professor?

Answer 1

This is what the US Copyright Law says:

102. Subject matter of copyright: In general26
(a) Copyright protection subsists, in accordance with this title, in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.

It means that anything should be put in, writing, recorded on something physical to be copyrighted. Any lectures or speech has no copyright unless it was previously written, or recorded. So if the professor put it down on writing or recorded it (all or part of it, which is very possible) before doing the lectures, he has the copyright unless he has a signed "Work for Hire" contract (very unlikely) giving the school the ownership of anything created by him.

Second, even if he doesn't have the copyright; you CAN"T sell and profit from any recording of his voice; you need his permission to do that, even if he agreed to be recorded on class; you must get a written release from him, in which he agree for his voice to be sold to the public. Or you would need to replay the information with someone else’s voice, or to put it on writing.

I almost took someone to court but he decided to pay me when his lawyer told him I was right. So if you don't want to spend many years in a court battle ask the professor before doing something like that. The courts are full with cases like this.

p.d. The "Fair Use" for educational purposes is only for teachers not for you; your are not a teacher, you are not teaching. And you still need the consent of the professor to use his recorded voice ("Fair Use" doesn't cover illegal distribution). You can get kicked from College for that kind of thing, plus being sued. For what? For a few bucks?

Answer 2

Technically their lectures are their property and they could probably sue you or at least subject you to punishment through the school of some sort, but most teachers don't really care enough to do anything about you just recording for personal use and maybe selling it or distributing it to someone else that is taking the class. Using those notes in a paper and not citing them or asking permission first is plagiarism though. As a rule of thumb my friends and I always ask the professor's permission before taping their lectures and then they lay out the ground rules.

Answer 3

YES! A lecture is copyrightable by the professor (it's not the underlying information, but the "expression" of that information that's copyrightable) and if you recorded it, you're violating his right to do so or to make derivative works from any written notes, powerpoint slides, etc. (There is an interesting question about who would "own" a lecture, because copyright attaches when something is "fixed in a tangible medium of expression," and if the professor does not record it, nor writes the lecture word-for-word but merely delivers a speech, the professor may not have copyright rights because he never "fixed" his words in a "tangible medium," but that's more of an academic exercise, because you would be recording without permission (or, at minimum, without permission to redistribute for profit)).
P.S. It's probably NOT the school's work, because most cases recognize that a teacher's writings and lectures are not "works for hire" as recognized in the Copyright law. (There are strict rules requiring a written contract specifically assigning rights, and most academic institutions do not box in their professors like that. Some do, and high school is probably different from college, but it's highly unlikely that the school would own a lecture.)

Answer 4

I see no reason whatsoever that copyright ought not to be applicable to blogs (though the terms of service of the provider of the web space may shift some rights to them). Whether this is enforceable and whether it is possible to demonstrate that the work originated with the putative author is another matter and copyright generally is facing increasing difficulties with information technology, but I see nothing legally special about blogs. However, I should spank your bum for using "intellectual property", a propagandistic term used by media companies and the like in order to further blur public perception of the differences between copyright, trademark, patent, et al, and to insinuate into people's minds that the temporary legal monopolies that the government grants people over the dissemination and utilization of ideas is in ANY way comparable to "property" in the traditional sense, either as a practical matter or in the sense that (physical) property has been understood as a natural right. Copyright, et al, have always been understood as a trade-off in social policy, one that was appropriate so long as it benefited the general welfare, never as an inalienable right!

Answer 5

Not of the teacher, though I believe it is considered property of the school (though I'm not completely sure on that--whether the school owns it or not).

But seriously, who would buy this. Anyone who wants to hear it would just take the course so they can get the credit for it. No one else would pay money for it, probably wouldn't even take it if it were free. You might have to pay them to take it away. There are better ways to make money.

Answer 6

You will not phantom what greedy people try to patent. This guy in some State went into the Hospital to have his spleen removed. the doctor asked if he could have it and the man said no. Long story short, doc. stole spleen, used for researched and developed $$Billion profits in some enzymes discovered. Man mad, man sue, court say to bad it would undo all the good work of the good (THIEF)(MY Emphases) Doctor...Mary.

Answer 7

I'm taking Business Ethics now and we're learning about Intelectual property... Good question...

It's public information, so I dont see it as being intellectual property... You already bought the information.

Answer 8

If they are, they would most likely belong to the school not the individual teacher.

Answer 9

Good Question....... But I Don't Know?