Examines laws governing intellectual property that affect distance education. Topics addressed include copyright law, particularly the concept of fair use; traditional applications of copyright law in education, including photocopying and the Classroom Guidelines; and distance learning and copyright law, including works transmitted via…

Defines copyright, and discusses what a copyright protects, the five basic rights of a copyright owner, and the rights of the software program owner. Also discussed are other forms of educational software protection including trademarks, trade secrets and patents, and software usage, copy protection, and possible future developments. (MBR)