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Question

Can I use quotes to start a quote website without getting permission, if I site my source....and which sources are okay to get quotes from?

Submitted: 316 days and 6 hours ago.
Category: Intellectual Property Law
Value: $15
Status: AWAITING EXPERT REPLY
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Great Meadows, New Jersey

Already Tried:
I'm really just beginning my research.

Posted by Alex Reese 316 days and 2 hours ago.

Answer

In general, copyright does not protect a slogan or a short phrase.

 

Typically, the legality of using copyrighted material it depends on the amount and purpose of your usage, whether is educational/amusement or commercial....the more commercial it is the bigger the potential problem. If you are taking quotes from a larger work like a movie screenplay then you want to look at the "fair use" exception to copyright infringement.

 

In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include -

(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors."

Under the fair use doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute, it is permissible to use limited portions of a work including quotes, for purposes such as commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports. There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work. Whether a particular use qualifies as fair use depends on all the circumstances.

 

The use of relatively short direct quotes from a published work does not usually require permission from the copyright holder as it typically falls under the "fair use" provision. However, extensive quoting of text from a copyrighted source can constitute copyright infringement, whether the appropriated text is properly enclosed in quotation marks or correctly paraphrased, even if a citation is provided according to established scholarly conventions.

316 days and 1 hours ago.

Reply

I believe you have answered my question with one tiny exception. I do intend to hit accept, but I hope it is okay if I just ask you to very briefly clear up one thing for me. You say it is usually acceptable if it is not commercial. I do not intend to sell anything on my site at this time and would consult further in the future if I do intend to, but I do plan on having ads on my site. Does that count as using the quotes commercially? Or am I still okay by using all the advice you provided. I thank you for your time and I will hit accept and I thank you for taking a moment to just clarify that for me.


Sincerely,

Shannon

Accepted Answer

Sure. Well everything is on a sliding scale, some acts are more commercial than others, but its good that you are not planning to sell the quotes or profit directly from them. So on the scale of commercializing, you are not seriously commercial. That supports your fair use position. Also, as I mentioned, it is debatable whether such quotes (and it may depend a bit on what kind of quotes) are copyrightable in the first place, and it is liekly that they are not. But even if they are considered to be copyrighted works, you want to do what you can to fall within the fair use exception.

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Expert: Alex Reese
Pos. Feedback: 100.0 %
Accepts: 
Answered: 1/11/2009

Lawyer

5 years experience in intellectual property law

316 days and 1 hours ago.

Reply

Thank u!!!

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