Tundra Times Photograph Project: Copyright Policy

It is assumed that photographs contained in the Tundra Times Photograph Project database are not in the public domain. Patrons need to be aware of the several kinds of rights which might apply: copyright, donor restrictions, privacy rights, publicity rights, licensing and trademarks.

The Tuzzy Consortium Library does not own rights to any material in the Tundra Times Photograph collection. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions (such as donor restrictions, privacy rights, publicity rights, licensing and trademarks) when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the Library's collections.

It is the Tuzzy Consortium Library's responsibility to inform patrons of any donor restrictions, that is, restrictions on use stipulated by the donor (Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation) when the collection was deposited in the Library. These agreements between the Library and the donor about use of the collection are separate from the legal rights of copyright, publicity, and privacy discussed in this document. This requirement is not a matter of copyright--it is possible that works in the collection may be subject to copyrights held by others--but is the result of the agreement made between the donor and the Library.

In 1998 the Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation acquired the Tundra Times Photograph Collection, as well as any "Associated copyrights, trademarks and service marks, and together with all copyrights, trademarks, releases of privacy and publicity rights, and any other similar rights belonging to the TUNDRA TIMES to all the Property, including but not limited to, any and all articles and photos appearing in the TUNDRA TIMES newspaper" (Tundra Times Bill of Sale)

Therefore, the Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation owns the copyrights to all photographs in the collection for which the Tundra Times was the previous owner. This is believed to be a significant fraction of the collection. However due to the complexity of copyright law and the incomplete documentation of the collection, it is often difficult to accurately determine the copyright owner of individual photographs.

It is also known that the copyrights to a fraction of the collection are owned by persons or entities other than the Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation. In most such cases, the copyright is held by the photographer.

It is the user's responsibility to determine the copyright status or obtain required permissions before publishing or distributing material from the Library's collections. The nature of historical archival collections means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to locate. Clues regarding information relating to rights may be derived from notations on the images, such as copyright notices and creator and source names, as well as image dates. When explicit rights information is lacking, patrons must conduct a "risk analysis" to determine appropriate use of an image. This involves coupling their knowledge of rights principles (such as duration of copyright, the definition of "published," and the definition of "fair use") with information supplied on the image.

For more information and resources concerning copyright issues patrons are encouraged to contact the Library of Congress and the United States Copyright Office.

To make arrangements to copy or reproduce these images, contact the Tuzzy Consortium Library. Contact Information.

The Tuzzy Consortium Library subscribes to the principles of cultural and intellectual property rights of indigenous peoples as stated by the participants of the Second International Indigenous Librarians' Forum:

As indigenous librarians, we state that the use of intellectual and cultural property in any medium, especially in light of the global instantaneous impact of the electronic environment, without the approval of all appropriate indigenous authorities is unacceptable.

If you feel that any of the photographs in the Tundra Times collection inappropriately portray you, your relatives or your village, please contact us.