FAQ: Faculty

If the printed work is published under an open license (such as Creative Commons Licenses), it can be scanned, within the limits set by the license itself.

In any other case, scans cannot be uploaded. Not even within the 15% limit set by the Italian copyright law (Legge 22 aprile 1941 n. 633) for personal use reproductions (art. 68), since it would be a violation of the authors exclusive right of reproduction, concerning “the multiplication of copies of the work in all or in part, either direct or indirect, temporary or permanent, by any means or in any form” (art. 13) and of the authors’ exclusive right of communication to the public of the work through “the use of any means of diffusion at a distance” (art. 16). [translation from the Italian by the Library Staff]

The recently amended Article 70-bis §1 states that the distribution of copyrighted works through digital platforms is allowed only for summary, quotation, reproduction (therefore also the scanning of a printed work), translation, and adaptation of excerpts or parts of the works (therefore not a full article or a chapter, nor an entire book due to the aforementioned limits). This limitation is justified by the purpose of illustration for teaching. The materials distributed through the digital platform, or learning management system:

- are accessible only to authenticated faculty and students enrolled in the course;
- do not constitute competition for the purchase of the same work;
- are not musical scores or works intended primarily for the education market.

Since the law explicitly calls into question the responsibility of the educational establishment (in our case John Cabot University), faculty might be requested not to publish the uploaded content, if deemed in violation of the law.
In any case, the summary, quotation, and reproduction of passages or parts of works and other materials is always accompanied by the indication of the source.