Center for Social Media Issues Guidelines For Staying Out of Copyright Trouble

Posted by Eriq Gardner

Yesterday, the Center for Social Media released its "Code of Best Practices for Fair Use in Online Video," which offers a legal guide to those looking to mix and mash popular, copyrighted content for "transformative" non-copyrighted use. The Center discusses what the latest changes in copyright law say about fair use, when it is ok to take "The O’Reilly Factor" or "Iron Man" to create a mash-up video on Facebook, YouTube, or other online venues.

These guidelines obviously aren't airtight in court, but the Center got good reviews for its guidelines for documentary filmmakers, and already the Code has earned endorsements from some broadcasters. Surely, everyone won't agree, but it's worth a read. Or if you prefer, there's a podcast that summarizes the most important findings of the report with an interview with two of the principals behind it.