Tuesday, January 01, 2002

Disclaimer

This site contains copyrighted material, the use of which has not always been specifically authorised by the copyright owner. Where ever possible I would include the name of the author/owner and give them full recognition for the excellent and invaluable work they do.

Under the provisions for fair dealings in the Copyright Act of Singapore, a certain amount of copying in specific instances is permissible. Fair dealing is when a fair and reasonable portion of the work is copied for:

  • research or private study;
  • criticism or review;
  • reporting current events; or
  • judicial proceedings or professional advice.

The following factors will be taken into account in deciding whether the use is a fair dealing:

  • purpose and character of the dealing, including whether such dealing is of a commercial nature or is for non-profit educational purposes;
  • nature of the work e.g. for certain works, like photographs, a taking of any part can constitute a taking of the whole;
  • amount and substantiality of the copying taken in relation to the whole work; and
  • effect of the dealing upon the potential market for, or value of, the work.

A fair dealing may be presumed when the portion copied is:

- For work divided into chapters
  • not more than one single chapters OR
  • not more than 10% of the total number of pages of the work.
- For work that is not divided into chapters
  • not more than 10% of the total number of pages.
- When the work is an edition stored on an electronic medium and is not divided into pages
  • not more than 10% of the total number of bytes in the edition
- When the work comprises an article in a periodical publication
  • the whole of the work

Reference: Exceptions to Copyright Infringement, http://www.ipos.gov.sg/main/aboutip/copyright/ownershipnrights.html, Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS)