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National Copyright Guidelines

• Copyright - a general overview
• What can I copy/communicate?
• Library and Disability Copying
• Education Licences (Statutory and Voluntary Licences)
• How to clear rights (where there is no Statutory Licence or Voluntary Agreement in place)
• Hot Topics
• Glossary

Education Licence D: AMCOS Licence

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AMCOS Licence for the Photocopying of Printed Musical Works by Schools for Educational Purposes

The Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society Limited (AMCOS) administers the AMCOS Schools Photocopying Licence.  This licence allows hard copy copying of printed musical works (sheet music) by or on behalf of schools.  All government schools and most non government schools are covered by this licence.

See 1.11: Statutory and Voluntary Licences for further information on Collecting Societies

Conditions of licence

All copying under the AMCOS licence must be:

• by a primary or secondary school covered by the licence
• for an educational purpose
• within the specified limits of the AMCOS licence
• covered by a remuneration notice given to AMCOS

Any copying outside the AMCOS licence will require permission from the copyright owner.

Definitions

Choral Music Work  means an instrumental work for up to 10 instruments.

Choral Sheet  means a separately published small choral work to be sung by a choir or group of singers with or without accompaniment.

Educational purpose  includes a reproduction of a musical print work that is:

• made for teaching purposes
• made and used as a part of a course of study
• made and retained in the library for use as a teaching resource
• made by a band, choir, orchestra or instrumental ensemble of that particular school.

Grand Right Works  include vocal or other scores from musicals, operas, operettas, music theatre works, ballets, pantomimes and stage shows and large choral works (longer than 20 minutes duration in their entirety).

Vocal Score means a publication which sets out the musical notation and lyrics of a large choral or vocal work.

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What the AMCOS Licence does not cover

The AMCOS licence does not cover copying:

• for private tuition, even if it takes place on the educational institution's premises
• for external examinations
• into a digital format or scanning of musical works
• of music textbooks
• of music tutorials
• of librettos
• of Grand Right Works.

Even if the copies were originally made for a permitted purpose, they cannot then be used for the purposes listed above.

Copying Limits

How many copies can we make?

Limits apply to the:

• amount of copying
• types of works that can be copied

by primary and secondary schools under the AMCOS Licence.

The copying limits are linked to the number of originals of each musical work owned by the school or the teacher.

Unlike the Statutory Text and Artistic Licence, there is no requirement that the work not be commercially available.

Primary Schools

Type of musical work	Permitted no. of copies per original
Separately published works	30 copies in total
Vocal score	30 copies each of a maximum of three songs from the vocal score
Choral Sheet	5 copies in total
Music Collection	30 copies in total with a maximum of 3 from the collection
Transcription by hand of melody and/or lyrics of a song	30 copies in total
Transcription by hand of musical work into a different key (Transposition)	30 copies in total
Orchestral/ band set	Copies of up to 30 instrumental parts
Chamber Music Work	Up to the number of players, provided not more than 10 parts are copied

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