1. Sauk Valley Community College respects intellectual property rights and fulfills its legal and moral obligations with regard to copyrighted works by adhering to United States copyright laws including the United States Copyright Law of 1976, Title 17 U.S.C. and its amendments.
2. No student or employee of SVCC may engage in reproduction, exhibition, or public performances of copyrighted works in print, video, or digital form in violation of the law. Likewise, illegal copying or sharing of copyrighted software, movies, or music is prohibited on College-owned equipment. Copyrighted works may include, but are not limited to, printed materials such as books and articles from periodicals, audiovisual recordings, television, radio, web broadcasts, photographs, illustrations, computer software and web pages.
3. Faculty, staff, and students are encouraged to use materials that further the educational mission of the College while being mindful of their rights and responsibilities of such use within the educational environment. To that end, they are encouraged to take full advantage of all relevant licenses, exemptions, and exclusions provided for under copyright laws or to secure permissions from copyright holders to reproduce, distribute, display, or perform protected materials. Those who disregard this policy do so at their own risk and assume all liability for their actions.
4. Penalties for copyright infringement include civil and criminal penalties. In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or statutory damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For willful infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorney fees. Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense.
