Easy Acces agreement

A new regulation on restrictions on educational use - the Easy Access Agreement - has been in force in the higher professional education (HBO) sector since January 1st, 2021.

What does it mean for me?

You may use excerpts from copyrighted materials in aid of your teaching without asking upfront permission from the copyright holder or holders.

Hanze UAS pays an annual fee for each student to Stichting UvO (Publishers' Association for Educational Licenses) in order to secure this right. This organisation then distributes the fees among the various publishers.

How much can I use?

• texts: a maximum of 50 pages and no more than 25% of the total number of pages in books, magazines, prose, sheet music and other types of publications;
• images: a maximum of 50 images per presentation or PDF, subject to the following additional conditions: a maximum of 25 images from a single source and a maximum of 10 images from the same content creator. 

• A maximum of 50 pages, but no more than 1/4 of the overall work: you may use up to 50 pages from any text-based work (books, e-books, magazines, prose, sheet music etc.) and upload them to the LMS, provided this does not amount to more than 1/4 of the overall work. 

Example book: you may use 50 pages from a 200-paged book;

                             you may not use more than 49 pages from a 196-paged book;

                             and not more than 50 pages from a 937-paged book.

Example article: In the case of articles, this means you may upload one full article from one issue of a journal in the LMS. A single article rarely constitutes more than 1/4 of a complete work (in the case of journals, a complete work is one issue of a journal).

• No permission needed: No prior consent is required for this form of usage.
• Fee: paid by the university at the start of each academic year.
• In other words, each degree programme may use a maximum of 50 pages per source: The number of pages from each source will be calculated over the entire degree programme.

Example for book: Situations where you use 30 pages from the same book twice (2x30) for the same subject constitute what is known as multiple use. Situations where you use 50 pages and your fellow lecturer also uses 50 pages from the same source in a different subject for the same degree programme also constitute multiple use. Similarly to the use of long excerpts, these forms of usage are not covered by the Easy Access scheme.

Example for article: If you use two articles from the same issue that jointly constitute more than 1/4 of the entire issue or are more than 50 pages long, this is considered a case of multiple use and, like the use of long excerpts, is not covered by the Easy Access agreement.

Multiple use (use of more than one excerpt from a single source) and the use of long excerpts (use in excess of the quantity permitted under the Easy Access agreement) require the permission of the copyright holder(s). For questions contact AIP (aip@org.hanze.nl).

• A maximum of 50 copyrighted images per PDF or presentation: If you are drawing from multiple sources and only using a few images from each source (book, article, website etc.) to create your presentation, the total number of copyrighted images may not exceed 50. You may also use an unlimited number of images with open or CC licenses.
• A maximum of 25 images from a single source: If you base a subject on a single source (e.g. a book), you may use a maximum of 25 images from this source. The number of images drawn from a single source will apply for the entire degree programme! If a fellow lecturer uses the same source for another subject within the same degree programme, you may jointly use no more than 25 images from this source in your presentations or PDFs.
• A maximum of 10 images from a single content creator: If all images in a single source (e.g. a book) were demonstrably created by the same person, you are only allowed to use 10 of these images in your presentations or PDFs on the LMS, calculated over the entire degree programme. 
• No permission needed: Any forms of usage in accordance with the above-mentioned conditions do not require upfront permission.
• Fee: Paid by the university at the start of each academic year.

You wish to use more than 25 images from one source? Or you use multiple powerpoint presentations that include more than 25 images from one source together? Check the next step of the Library Guide "Long excerpt" or contact AIP (aip@org.hanze.nl).

Summary of rules and tips on the use of images in presentations:

• The Easy Access agreement only allows for digital re-use insofar as this takes place within a university's own closed learning environment for non-profit educational purposes. 
• The creator or creators' personality rights must be respected by means of a clear acknowledgement of the source and name of the creator or creators.
• The Easy Access agreement does not apply to government publications, unless these publications are protected by copyright.

Due to certain restrictions on copyright, educational institutions have more freedom to use copyrighted materials than (for instance) commercial parties.

However, it is important to apply the appropriate exemptions and adhere to their conditions.

The following table details the permitted uses for each type of material, the environment in which they may be used and the relevant copyright exemptions. 

6: Will you be using an excerpt exceeding 50 pages or 1/4 of the original publication?