Is it OK to glean information off the internet to share with employees in your company. According to a recent study by the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), a not-for-profit organization creating global licensing and content solutions that make copyright work for everyone, the answer gives rise to concern.
CCC recently announced key findings from Outsell’s 2013 study on Enterprise Information Access, Consumption and Use.
“Executives may be the largest creators of risk with regard to copyright compliance within an organization as they are the greatest consumers and sharers of information, both internally and externally”
Nearly half the executives surveyed are potentially exposing their organizations’ to the risk of copyright infringement violations. According to the data, 48% of executives believe it’s acceptable to share information as long as it’s not used for commercial purposes, and 45% believe digital or print paid information is fine to share.
“Executives may be the largest creators of risk with regard to copyright compliance within an organization as they are the greatest consumers and sharers of information, both internally and externally,” said Miles McNamee, Vice President, Licensing and Business Development, CCC. “As information sharing accelerates and becomes more critical, the likelihood of copyright violation rises.”
Study results indicate that the total volume of content sharing has increased dramatically since 2007. On average, respondents in 2013 share content with 11.2 people per week compared to 7.2 people per week in 2007. Knowledge workers in Legal, Other Manufacturing, and Telecommunications/Media share with the greatest number of people (13 or more) when they forward information. Across all industries, the average number of forwards is 7.5 times per week. Legal workers forward most frequently at 11.5 times per week, followed by Energy, Wholesale, Telecommunications/Media, and Chemicals. The study found that knowledge workers’ sharing has increased regardless of company size, with the primary method being email attachment.
The top category of content types used during work is publications: 54% of respondents identify publications as critical to their job, followed by charts, tables and databases.
“With so many moving parts, seen and unseen, copyright needs to be highlighted in all organizations,” said McNamee. “Knowledge workers need to know of its existence, its importance and the risks of violation.”
CCC engaged Outsell to detect shifts since 2007 in the state of copyright practices in businesses (described in an earlier Outsell study) and to highlight important trends going forward. For 2013, Outsell undertook primary quantitative research and analysis through an online survey questionnaire organized into four topic areas: demographics, information access and consumption, sharing habits and behaviors, and copyright awareness. Outsell surveyed over 700 business professionals to achieve a 95% confidence level in its findings, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7%.
Outsell, Inc. is the world’s only research and advisory firm focused solely on media, information, and technology.
About Copyright Clearance Center
Copyright Clearance Center (CCC), the rights licensing expert, is a global rights broker for the world’s most sought-after materials, including in- and out-of-print books, journals, newspapers, magazines, movies, television shows, images, blogs and ebooks. Founded in 1978 as a not-for-profit organization, CCC provides smart solutions that simplify the access and licensing of content and let businesses and academic institutions quickly get permission to use copyright-protected materials, while compensating publishers and content creators for using their works. We make copyright work. For more information, visit www.copyright.com.
TIGERS Success Series by Dianne Crampton
About TIGERS Success Series
TIGERS Success Series is a team work consultancy with a two decade track record of helping leaders build teams of engaged and loyal employees. TIGERS provides licensing and Certification to HR Executives interested in securing a full suite of team development activities.
