Chapter Eight
Audiovisual Works and
Non-Print Media
According to the Copyright Act, audiovisual works “are works that consist of a series of related images which are intrinsically intended to be shown by the use of machines, or devices such as projectors, viewers, or electronic equipment, together with accompanying sounds, if any, regardless of the nature of the material objects, such as films or tapes, in which the works are embodied.”[1] In other words, audiovisual works mix visual images and sound, and include items such as films, TV shows, and DVDs.
Permissible uses of audiovisual works under the Copyright Act, like uses of copyrighted works in other formats, are not always clear. In fact, sometimes it can be pretty muddy. This chapter covers copying and showing of audiovisual works in light of the copyright owner’s public display and public performance rights.
Recording
It has been over a generation since the U.S. Supreme Court decided Sony Corp. of America y. Universal City Studios, Inc.,[2] or the “Betamax” case. In 1984, the Court held that off-air taping of broadcast television programs in one’s own home for the non-commercial purpose of time-shifting is not infringing. A few points about the Betamax case: First, the decision applies only to programs broadcast on free network television: pay television
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