Streaming Video Sources

Copyright/Fair Dealing guidelines

Short film clips can be used in classrooms subject to fair dealing. It is important to note that the use of videos outside of secure online infrastructure like Panopto (e.g. Zoom) may pose issues for copyright, as fair dealing and other copyright exceptions are more likely to be applied if they are done using secure, password-protected sites, such as Panopto and Brightspace.

There are a few general guidelines that you should follow when making short clips:

• Ensure clips are made from legitimately owned media and not commercial streaming services (e.g. Itunes, Netflix -- see below), as this may constitute violating terms of use of these services. 
• Take care not to break any digital locks (e.g. bypassing passwords, use of ripping software) on any of the copies from which you make clips. 
• Provide a citation for each clip used. This could be done on the presentation slide that features the clip in your slides, or in a slide with references at the end. This need not be extensive or necessarily adhering to any citation style, and could be as simple as: Film name. Date. Director/Producer. Production company.
• Ensure that the recording and files containing the video recording  is set to be non-downloadable, which can be done in Panopto. This will help to ensure that the video clips are not circulated beyond your class
• Consider removing the video clips if you share your presentation slides, putting instead a placeholder in lieu of the video clip (such as the citation noted above).
• Consider making your Panopto lecture video  non-downloadable. 
• Consider limiting the use of video clips to no more than 5 minutes — or no more than ten per cent of the total runtime of the video. This will help to ensure that you are operating within fair dealing guidelines.
• (If using Panopto) destroy the Panopto recording of your lecture 30 days following the end of course. Automatic deletion of content can be automated in Panopto.

Videos found on the open internet (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) 

With proper attribution/citation, you may link to legitimately posted works found on the Internet.  

If you choose to use a video you find in services such as YouTube or Vimeo in your online course, you should be aware of these potential limitations:

• Videos on these services can be removed from services with little or no notice 
• Not all videos can be played in all countries 
• Link to the content rather than copying it, except where there is a license or terms of use that explicitly allows copying. 
• Ensure, to the best of your ability, that the content has been posted legally. Content that has not been posted with the rights holders’ permission may be removed from streaming services without notice and no recourse.

Instructors are encouraged not to link to videos; however, if any of the following are evident: 

• the works are protected by digital locks, such as paywalls or other digital rights management mechanisms that will prevent access
• there is a clearly visible notice, such as a terms of use or similar notice, posted on the website indicating that copying is not permitted
• the video has likely been made available by a third-party without permission of the copyright owner

To identify information on permissible uses or for contact information for requesting permission, you may need to explore the website for pages that deal with "Terms of Use" or "Legal Notices", or look for a link to a specific license.  

Popular commercial video streaming services 

In most cases, videos available on commercial services like Amazon Prime, Crave, HBO, Hulu, and Netflix are not available for use in online educational settings because the providers of these services base their service model on selling subscriptions directly to consumers.

Section 29.5(d) of the Copyright Act allows instructors to show legally obtained videos in class. However, in order to access content on commercial streaming video services such as Netflix, users must accept user agreements which indicate that the services are limited to “personal use” or “household use”. These agreements prohibit the display of these films in classrooms or public screenings and may override copyright exceptions available to users under the Copyright Act. These types of licenses/agreements also prohibit making recordings of the films — short clips or otherwise — since this often involves breaking digital locks or violating terms of use. 

Netflix

Netflix does offer some films for online education use through their YouTube channel. Netflix also offers in-person classroom exceptions for educational screenings, but has not made it clear whether or not these exceptions would apply to online classroom settings.

Finally, videos in commercial streaming services are not available in all countries. Content available in Canadian Netflix, for example, may not be available in the United States. Similarly, videos available in other countries may not be available in Canada. Content may also be removed at the discretion of the commercial service without notice or recourse.