Licensed Materials & Services on Campus

Access Copyright

Access Copyright is a collective that represents a large number of Canadian writers and publishers. This collective is the main licensing body related to the use of print copyrighted works in an educational setting in Canada. Most Canadian universities and colleges – including Queen’s University – have historically maintained a copying agreement with Access Copyright. The Access Copyright agreement gave Queen’s University students and instructors the right to make limited print copies of copyrighted works for an annual fee.

Queen's has made the decision to move forward without an Access Copyright licence.  If you want to make material available for your class, please ensure that third party copyrighted materials (such as book chapters and articles) have either been licensed for use or fall under an exception or limitation in Canadian Copyright law.

Note: Both the Queen's Campus Bookstore and the AMS Printing and Copy Centre are independent from Queen's and have their own licensing agreements with Access Copyright. For more information, see the Campus Bookstore and the AMS Printing and Copy Centre section on this page. 

Library Licenses

Queen's University Library also holds a number of separate licensing agreements with database and e-book providers. Copies of these works must be made according to the terms of the licenses negotiated with the individual publishers and vendors. In some instances a copyright-protected work is made available to the university under a license with a publisher or aggregator that prohibits certain uses of the work, e.g., prohibits the copying of the work for inclusion in a course pack. Before using the Fair Dealing Policy to copy or communicate a short excerpt of a copyright-protected work that is subject to a digital license, it is necessary to ensure that the use is not prohibited by the license.

Each one of these licenses is different: The Queen's library has a database that allows you to find out exactly what is permitted under the terms of the licensing agreements that we have with each database provider (see Licensing Database). Contact the Copyright Advisory Office if you have questions related to the terms of the licensing agreements between the Queen's University Library and a specific database provider. For most of these databases, we recommend providing a link to the material in the library catalogue. 

How do you link to online material in the library collection? The Create Permanent Links to Online Articles page includes step-by-step instructions for creating links that work both on and off campus.  

The Campus Bookstore & the AMS Printing & Copy Centre

The Campus Bookstore and the AMS Printing and Copy Centre are the two main providers of print coursepacks at Queen's University. Both of these organizations are independent from the University.

Print course pack services at Queen's University:

• Campus Bookstore
• AMS Printing & Copy Centre

Creating a course reading list? Remember to consult the Create Permanent Links to Online Articles page on the library website before you submit your coursepack to the Campus Bookstore or the AMS Printing and Copy Centre.

Permissions & Course Reserves

If copying or communicating a copyright-protected work is outside the Fair Dealing Policy and does not fall within one of the exemptions in the Copyright Act, permission of the holder of copyright must be secured. Permission may be obtained directly from the holder of copyright or his or her representative. The Copyright Clearance Center, a U.S. non-profit organization, provides transactional permission in respect of a very large repertoire of copyright-protected works on behalf of copyright holders. The Copyright Office can assist in obtaining the necessary permissions. Options for obtaining permissions at Queen's are available at Copyright Clearance & Permissions .

It is advisable to seek written permission to copy or communicate a copyright-protected work outside the Fair Dealing Policy and to retain a copy of the written permission in the event that copying or communicating the work is ever challenged.

One options for obtaining permission is through our reserve service (Course Reserves). Through this service, the library will: 

• Scan print books and journal articles that meet the Fair Dealing Requirements (Appendix A of the Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy)
• Acquire and process copyright permissions as needed
• Create and provide links to electronic library resources
• Adapt materials to meet accessibility standards
• Make the readings available to students through onQ

For more information see the Course Reserves page.