-----Original Message-----
From Cynthia Blake:
Section 108 is the "fair usey" section of US Copyright Law that applies
to creation of copies (including phonorecords which refers to any type
of fixed sound recording) by libraries and archives. Under certain
conditions, qualifying libraries and archives can reproduce and
distribute a very limited number of copies. Working with your
organization's legal counsel is advised, because your insitution, or
the recording at issue, may not qualify for these exemptions from
copyright infringement.
This is still not "fair use." It is a very specific exemption for a very specific group.
"Fair Use" means that a court has held that making a copy within a very
narrow, specific context is not infringement. For example it was held that
making a backup copy of software sold on a floppy disk is "fair use" because
a defendant was able to demonstrate to a judge that it was unreasonable to
expect floppy disks to perform in an appropriately reliable manner relative
to the cost the software. Backup of software distributed in any manner other
than a floppy disk is not "fair use" although most developers grant a right
to make backups in their software license.