CCC announced its Annual Copyright License for Higher Education (ACLHE) will include internal-use AI reuse rights, expanding the license to address the growing use of AI across higher education in the United States.
Copyrighted materials are the fuel for Artificial Intelligence systems, making copyright central to high-quality outcomes. According to a recent report from EDUCAUSE, “The Impact of AI on Work in Higher Education,” 47% of respondents cited violations of copyright and intellectual property when asked to identify the most urgent risks associated with using AI tools for work in higher education.
Colleges and universities obtain high-quality copyrighted content through direct subscriptions with publishers and individual online article purchases. However, those subscriptions and purchases typically do not authorize use of that content in AI systems, and institutions often lack the time or resources to negotiate AI rights directly with a multitude of publishers. The expanded CCC license helps close a growing permissions gap on campuses by enabling the authorized internal reuse of lawfully acquired content within AI systems for summarization, chatbots, prompting, and research support.
The ACLHE is a voluntary, non-exclusive, collective license that allows academic institutions to reuse high-quality, text-based copyrighted content in course materials and within AI systems to support teaching and learning, enrich research, and simplify copyright compliance. With a uniform set of print and digital reuse rights, the ACLHE complements the institution’s subscriptions and enables faculty, researchers, students, and staff to reuse copyrighted content in learning management systems postings, print and electronic course materials, traditional library reserves and e-reserves, and now including internal uses in AI systems. The addition of these AI reuse rights enables academic institutions to use published, copyright-protected content, public domain materials, or internal content they may currently use to enrich research and support the institution’s AI initiatives.