Fair Use

Fair Use: Fair use refers to stated exceptions to allowed use of work under copyright law. The term originated in the United States, where it has come to refer to a doctrine which permits the limited use of a creative work under copyright without the permission of the author or copyright holder. Fair use is covered under section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Code.

A number of surprising forms of use are covered by fair use, including search engines, commentary, criticism, parody, news reporting, research, teaching, library archiving, and more. Several factors help determine whether a project is covered by this doctrine: it must advance knowledge and progress for the enrichment of the general population, the nature of the copied work, the amount of the original work that has been copied, the effect on the original work's value, and the standards and requirements of the professional community where the use is found. A great example is photographer Tom Forsythe's project "Food Chain Barbie", which features the popular dolls being destroyed in common household settings: the photographs are designed to make viewers question the values Barbie represents, are parodies and not recreations, demonstrate significant additional work or transforming details (such as a doll being baked in an oven), are unlikely to hurt Mattel's success, and come from a setting where parody is very much part of the professional environment.