Administration of Copyright Policy

1. Determinations of Ownership and Policy in Unclear Cases

Questions of ownership or other matters pertaining to materials covered by this policy shall be resolved by the Dean of Research (or his or her designee) in consultation with the Office of Sponsored Research, the Office of Technology Licensing (OTL) and the Legal Office. For academic and research issues, the Dean of Research is the Provost's designee.

2. Licensing and Income Sharing

A. Licensing

OTL seeks the most effective means of technology transfer for public use and benefit and, toward that end, handles the evaluation, marketing, negotiations, and licensing of University-owned inventions or copyrightable materials with commercial potential. Computer databases, software and firmware, and other copyrightable works owned by the University, are licensed through OTL. Exceptions to this procedure must be approved in advance by the Dean of Research.

B. Royalty Distribution

Royalties will normally be allocated in accordance with the University's policy on Inventions, Patents, and Licensing. If copyright protection alone is claimed, royalties normally will be allocated in a similar manner, with the "inventor's share" allocated among individuals identified by the investigator (or department head if not under a sponsored agreement), based on their relative contributions to the work. Where royalty distribution to individuals would be impracticable or inequitable (for example, when the copyrightable material has been developed as a laboratory project, or where individual royalty distribution could distort academic priorities), the "inventor's share" may be allocated to a research or educational account in the laboratory where the copyrightable material was developed. Such determination will be made on a case-by-case basis by the Office of Technology Licensing after consultation with the PI or department head, and is subject to the approval of the Dean of Research.

C. Assignments

No assignment, license or other agreement may be entered into or will be considered valid with respect to copyrighted works owned by the University except by an official specifically authorized to do so.

Question regarding licensing and royalty-sharing should be addressed to the Office of Technology Licensing.

3. Use of the University Name in Copyright Notices

The following notice should be placed on University-owned materials in order to protect the copyright: Copyright © [year] The Board of Trustees of The Leland Stanford Junior University. All Rights Reserved. No other institutional or departmental name is to be used in the copyright notice, although the name and address of the department to which readers can direct inquiries may be listed below the copyright notice. The date in the notice should be the year in which the work is first published, i.e. distributed to the public or any sizable audience. Additionally, works may be registered with the United States Copyright Office using its official forms. Forms may be obtained from the Office of Technology Licensing, to which questions concerning copyright notices and registration also may be addressed.

4. Copyright Agreements

Each department is responsible for getting a Patent and Copyright Agreement (SU-18) signed, normally at the time of the individual's initial association with Stanford.

5. Copying of Works Owned by Others

Members of the University community are cautioned to observe the rights of other copyright owners. Contact the Provost's Office or the Legal Office for University policies pertaining to copying for classroom use. Policies regarding copying for library purposes may be obtained from the Office of the Director of Libraries.

6. Sponsored Agreements

Contracts and grants frequently contain complex provisions relating to copyright, rights in data, royalties, publication and various categories of material including proprietary data, computer software, licenses, etc. Questions regarding the specific terms and conditions of individual contracts and grants, or regarding rules, regulations and statutes applicable to the various government agencies, should be addressed to the University's Office of Sponsored Research.

7. General Advice and Assistance

The Office of Sponsored Research , the Office of Technology Licensing, the Office of the Dean of Research and the Legal Office are available to advise on questions arising under this policy , and to assist with the negotiation and interpretation of the provisions of proposed formal agreements with third parties, as described earlier in the sections.