Showing Digital Video Recordings

Here in the UK in order to show television recordings to your students you may need a licence, this is run by the Educational Recording Agency (ERA).

One thing I have found that a lot of people don’t realise is that the ERA licence only covers specific broadcasts from the following broadcasters.

BBC television and radio
ITV Network services (including ITV2 and ITV3)
Channel Four and E4
Five television
S4C

It does not include for example films or adverts or commercial radio.

However this is not an issue (except for labelling purposes) to quote the ERA:

However, if you record these broadcasts for non-commercial educational purposes your recordings will not infringe copyright, unless a certified Section 35 licence applies. This is because Section 35 (1) states that where works are not covered by a certified scheme, then educational establishments may reproduce and communicate them electronically on-site without infringing copyright. You will need to adequately acknowledge, i.e. label, any broadcast recordings you make under Section 35 (1).

So you can record adverts for showing for instructional purposes, or as one college I am aware of recorded The Terminator for a media lesson, without needing a licence.

Note to those who wish to hold digital recordings of tv shows, the ERA licence for ERA licenced recordings only covers the on-site computers and therefore you can not stream to students at home for example.

Digital recordings stored on-site, e.g. on an establishment’s central server, may only be accessed from on-site terminals. A suitable security or password protection system needs to be in place to ensure recorded material is not accessed by students at home or anywhere off-site, as this is not permitted under the ERA Scheme or any part of Section 35.

Usual disclaimer applies, all material in this posting is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. In all copyright matters, consult a legal expert or lawyer.

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