University Statement on Copyright

Copyright infringement is a violation of federal law and subject to severe civil penalties and sanctions. It can also be a violation of federal criminal law.

Under federal copyright law, copyrighted works may not be copied, published, disseminated, displayed, performed or played without the permission of the copyright holder, unless such use is deemed to be “fair use” under the law. This includes sharing music, movies and other copyrighted material via peer-to-peer applications. Thus, every user of East Carolina University’s network must maintain a basic understanding of copyright law and must comply with applicable East Carolina University policies.

It is the policy of East Carolina University to promptly process and investigate notices of alleged copyright infringement, and to take appropriate action under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Title 17, United States Code, Section 512 (“DMCA”).

ECU may suspend the network access of users while investigating a copyright complaint and may terminate the network account of users found to have repeatedly infringed the copyrights of others. Furthermore, students, staff and faculty may be subject to disciplinary action pursuant to applicable computer use policies for violations of copyright laws.

Pursuant to the DMCA, East Carolina University has designated an agent to receive notification of alleged copyright infringement occurring on web pages or computer servers. East Carolina University’s designated agent is:

Cheryl Godwin
Director, Network Services
East Carolina University
209 Cotanche Street
Greenville, NC 27858
Telephone 252-328-9029
Fax: 252-737-9029

For more information on U.S. copyright law and the DMCA, consult the website of the U.S. Copyright Office. The U.S. Copyright office has a variety of circulars and forms, available online or printed that provide answers and guidance to many copyright questions and issues.

Joseph Thomas
ECU Copyright Consultant
Academic Library Services
copyright@ecu.edu