Information about Copyright
About Copying Service and Copyright
1. Copyright
Copyright is the right of authors who create a work, for example a novel, an article, a paper, a picture, a photograph, a map, a music score and so on. The author has the exclusive right to reproduce his/her work. So, reproduction in libraries is subject to legal limitation. Therefore, as a general rule, we can only offer a single copy of a part of a work.
The duration of copyright is "until the end of a period of fifty years following the death of the author, " and in the case of work bearing the name of a corporate body, "until the end of a period of fifty years following the making public of the work."
Also in the case of Out-of-Print publications and those by defunct corporate bodies, in principle, we cannot provide a whole copy of work as long as the duration of the copyright lasts. If you want to get a copy of the whole of a work, please see 5. Procedure necessary for copying the whole of a work.
2. "A part of a work" (limit of copying a book)
In general, "a part of a work" is interpreted as "less than 50%." We consider the upper limit of copying as the following examples according to the type of the work. In the case of a serial publication, please see 3. Limit of copying a serial publication.
| Type of the work | Limit of copying |
|---|---|
| Monographs | Main text: half Content and index: all Preface, commentary, etc.: half of the preface, commentary, etc. |
| Collected editions, anthologies of short stories, collected papers, etc. | Half of each story, thesis, etc. |
| Doctoral dissertations | Half of the dissertation |
| Codes and standards | National standard or government standard (Japanese and overseas): all Other standards: half of each text Codes and standards translated by Japanese Standards Association (JSA) or others: half of each text Commentary written by JSA etc.: half of each text |
| Maps | Sheet map: half of each map Atlas: either page of two-page spread a map produced by the Geographical Survey Institute (except for CD-ROM): all (If your reproduction request is for the purpose of your own investigation or research.) |
| Photographs | Half of each photograph (If the photograph is smaller than one page, you cannot get a copy.) If the photograph was published before 1956, or if the photograph is in a magazine or newspaper (except the latest issue), you can get a copy of the whole photograph. |
| Pictures | Half of each picture (If the picture is smaller than one page, you cannot get a copy.) If the picture is in magazines or newspapers (except the latest issue), you can get a copy of the whole of the picture. |
| Music score, lyrics | Half of each music score or lyric (If the music score or the lyric is smaller than one page, you cannot get a copy.) If the music score or lyric is in a magazine or newspaper (except the latest issue), you can get a copy of the whole of the music score or the lyric. |
3. Limit of copying a serial publication
For each article in a magazine or newspaper (except the latest issue), you can get a copy of the whole article.
For copying several articles in one issue, the total pages copied should be less than half of all pages of the issue.
As an exceptional case, if one article exceeds half of the issue, you can get a copy of the whole article.
For the latest issue (of a serial publication) which has not been published for a considerable period of time, you cannot get a copy.
4. Purpose of copying
Reproducing library materials at the library is allowed only for the limited purposes shown under the Copyright Law, such as user's own investigation or research, judicial proceeding etc. In the case of other purposes, permission of a copyright holder is required regardless of the amount of copying.
5. Procedure necessary for copying of the whole of a work
Written permission of a copyright holder is required. Any format is accepted if it clearly shows that the copyright holder has given you permission with his/her seal or signature.
If you cannot find the copyright holder or the contact address of copyright holder, you can take the procedure to get a compulsory license issued by the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs. For more information, please see the Agency for Cultural Affairs Homepage (in Japanese)
Example of permission from copyright holder
| To [your name]: |
| I agree that you may obtain at the National Diet Library (NDL) a reproduction of all pages of [name of the publication] owned by the NDL. |
| Date: |
| [Name of the copyright holder] |
| [Seal or signature] |