Changes to the Copyright Act and how it affects educational institutions
The Copyright Act currently allows educational institutions to make certain uses of copyright material for educational purposes. The government has introduced a 'flexible dealing' exception that allows 'non-commercial uses by educational institutions for the purposes of teaching'.
The proposed change that most affects educational institutions is the ability to format-shift. Format-shifting means copying material from one format to another. This means that schools should be able to copy their ageing VHS materials onto DVDs.
This and other copyright changes affecting educational institutions can be found on Australian Copyright Council Information Sheet - Copyright Amendment Act 2006
