Copyright in
Medical Communications

Q: We often reuse content that will be shared with a global audience. What do we need to know about copyright when sharing material globally?

Chloe Olore, Education Program Specialist at CCC, provides her perspective on this reader question below. The first thing to note is that there is no one international copyright law. All countries have their own copyright laws and requirements. There are, however, several international treaties that cover copyright law. These international treaties encourage reasonably coherent protection of copyright from country to country. They set minimum standards of protection that each signatory country then implements within the bounds of its own copyright law. This means that, when using content globally, you must consider both applicable international treaties as well as the national laws of the country where the content is created and will be shared. Also consider the licenses and subscriptions that a company has invested in and, of course, compliance with the company’s copyright policies. All these elements must be factored into any decision about reusing, sharing and/or publishing content internationally. If you’d like to learn more about these treaties, please visit our copyright education page on International Copyright Treaties . Please consult with your organization’s legal counsel about the copyright policy in your country and how that policy may vary in different countries.

Q: My client has an online subscription to a journal and would like to post articles from that journal on their intranet site for employee education and to send to external contacts, including my MedComm team. Is permission required even though they have a subscription?

Erin Callahan, Senior Director, Information and Content Solutions at CCC, shares her perspective below. Distributing copyrighted content by posting it to an intranet site is no different than emailing a copy to each employee. Both actions typically require permission. In some cases, distribution within the company may be permitted by the relevant journal subscription, but in many others, separate permission from the copyright holder or its authorized agent is required to share additional copies. It’s quite rare that subscription agreements allow distribution to people outside the organization. Your client should check the subscription terms carefully before sending content outside their company. Your client will likely need to acquire additional permissions or purchase digital or hardcopy reprints to send those external copies to you and your team.

Q: How do you recommend I share permissions licenses with my clients?

CCC reached out to Elizabeth Jennings, Editorial Team Lead at UK-based Scientific Group, for her perspective on this question. MedComm professionals handle sharing, tracking, and storing permissions secured on behalf of their clients in several ways; everything from complex SharePoint filing systems, to Excel, to simply emailing the license to the client. Regardless of the tools used for these tasks, it’s essential that MedComm professionals share information about the permissions license with the client. Do not let the license sit in your email or purchasing platform. Your client holds the permission and, if audited, will need the license to validate their compliance with copyright. In addition to sharing the license, make certain you provide your client with the following: Accompanying Terms and Conditions, which provides your client with critical information about what is permitted under the license. The Terms and Conditions often include details such as expiry date, and audience size and/or duration of time covered by the license. Clear documentation about which project the license is associated with, especially when you are managing multiple projects for the client. Using a license purchased for one project for another project will likely violate the terms and conditions of that license and may be a breach of copyright if there isn’t a separate license governing such use.

Q: I’ve noticed that my colleagues and clients are increasingly seeking to reuse content that is not “published” in a traditional source such as a scientific journal. While I want to encourage the reuse of all reputable content, how can I monitor copyright compliance in this new world?

Erin Callahan, Senior Director, Information & Content Solutions at CCC, shares her thoughts on this question below. You are correct that given the abundance of available content in many different formats, it can be difficult for people to know when and how to secure permissions. Technology has made a massive amount of content available from a variety of sources. It’s easy to access and easy to share. People forward emails, store copies of articles, share links and materials and upload content to share with both internal and external colleagues or clients. The lack of an access barrier to all this content can lead to a lack of knowledge on how to share materials in full compliance. But even though it’s easy to access and share content, most often, permission still needs to be secured from the rightsholder. While the MedComms community is highly compliant, it is simply not possible to monitor and control how every employee across the agency accesses and shares content with internal and external contacts. A good place to start is by providing your team with education such as CCC’s complimentary webcasts, including Copyright Basics for Medical Communications, which are hosted live several times a year and are also available as on-demand recordings. Learn more about CCC copyright education programs here .

Question 1

Q: We often reuse content that will be shared with a global audience. What do we need to know about copyright when sharing material globally?

Industry Insights is provided for informational purposes only and is not legal or other professional advice. If you have legal questions, please consult your own legal counsel. Also note that the opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of CCC or its affiliates and may be specific to a particular jurisdiction. The content on this page is provided “as is” and no representations are made that the content is error-free.

Answer

Chloe Olore, Education Program Specialist at CCC, provides her perspective on this reader question below.

The first thing to note is that there is no one international copyright law. All countries have their own copyright laws and requirements. There are, however, several international treaties that cover copyright law. These international treaties encourage reasonably coherent protection of copyright from country to country. They set minimum standards of protection that each signatory country then implements within the bounds of its own copyright law.

This means that, when using content globally, you must consider both applicable international treaties as well as the national laws of the country where the content is created and will be shared. Also consider the licenses and subscriptions that a company has invested in and, of course, compliance with the company’s copyright policies. All these elements must be factored into any decision about reusing, sharing and/or publishing content internationally.

If you’d like to learn more about these treaties, please visit our copyright education page on International Copyright Treaties. Please consult with your organization’s legal counsel about the copyright policy in your country and how that policy may vary in different countries.

18 June 2026

Question 2

My client has an online subscription to a journal and would like to post articles from that journal on their intranet site for employee education and to send to external contacts, including my MedComm team. Is permission required even though they have a subscription?

Answer

Erin Callahan, Senior Director, Information and Content Solutions at CCC, shares her perspective below.

Distributing copyrighted content by posting it to an intranet site is no different than emailing a copy to each employee. Both actions typically require permission. In some cases, distribution within the company may be permitted by the relevant journal subscription, but in many others, separate permission from the copyright holder or its authorized agent is required to share additional copies. It’s quite rare that subscription agreements allow distribution to people outside the organization. Your client should check the subscription terms carefully before sending content outside their company. Your client will likely need to acquire additional permissions or purchase digital or hardcopy reprints to send those external copies to you and your team.

10 June 2026

Question 3

How do you recommend I share permissions licenses with my clients?

Answer

CCC reached out to Elizabeth Jennings, Editorial Team Lead at UK-based Scientific Group, for her perspective on this question.

MedComm professionals handle sharing, tracking, and storing permissions secured on behalf of their clients in several ways; everything from complex SharePoint filing systems, to Excel, to simply emailing the license to the client. Regardless of the tools used for these tasks, it’s essential that MedComm professionals share information about the permissions license with the client. Do not let the license sit in your email or purchasing platform. Your client holds the permission and, if audited, will need the license to validate their compliance with copyright.

In addition to sharing the license, make certain you provide your client with the following:

Accompanying Terms and Conditions, which provides your client with critical information about what is permitted under the license. The Terms and Conditions often include details such as expiry date, and audience size and/or duration of time covered by the license.
Clear documentation about which project the license is associated with, especially when you are managing multiple projects for the client. Using a license purchased for one project for another project will likely violate the terms and conditions of that license and may be a breach of copyright if there isn’t a separate license governing such use.

3 June 2026

Question 4

I’ve noticed that my colleagues and clients are increasingly seeking to reuse content that is not “published” in a traditional source such as a scientific journal. While I want to encourage the reuse of all reputable content, how can I monitor copyright compliance in this new world?

Answer

Erin Callahan, Senior Director, Information & Content Solutions at CCC, shares her thoughts on this question below.

You are correct that given the abundance of available content in many different formats, it can be difficult for people to know when and how to secure permissions. Technology has made a massive amount of content available from a variety of sources. It’s easy to access and easy to share. People forward emails, store copies of articles, share links and materials and upload content to share with both internal and external colleagues or clients. The lack of an access barrier to all this content can lead to a lack of knowledge on how to share materials in full compliance. But even though it’s easy to access and share content, most often, permission still needs to be secured from the rightsholder.

While the MedComms community is highly compliant, it is simply not possible to monitor and control how every employee across the agency accesses and shares content with internal and external contacts. A good place to start is by providing your team with education such as CCC’s complimentary webcasts, including Copyright Basics for Medical Communications, which are hosted live several times a year and are also available as on-demand recordings. Learn more about CCC copyright education programs here.

27 May 2026

Copyright in
Medical Communications

Industry Insights

Q: We often reuse content that will be shared with a global audience. What do we need to know about copyright when sharing material globally?

My client has an online subscription to a journal and would like to post articles from that journal on their intranet site for employee education and to send to external contacts, including my MedComm team. Is permission required even though they have a subscription?

How do you recommend I share permissions licenses with my clients?

I’ve noticed that my colleagues and clients are increasingly seeking to reuse content that is not “published” in a traditional source such as a scientific journal. While I want to encourage the reuse of all reputable content, how can I monitor copyright compliance in this new world?

Guide to Understanding Copyright and Content Reuse in Medical Communications

Learn more about copyright in Medical Communications

Addressing Common Reuse Questions in Medical Communications

Top 10 Misconceptions About Copyright in Medical Communications

Copyright Basics for Medical Communications Complimentary Webcast

CCC Marketplace

CCC takes a consultative approach with a mission to create solutions together.

Q: We often reuse content that will be shared with a global audience. What do we need to know about copyright when sharing material globally?

Guide to Understanding Copyright and Content Reuse in Medical Communications

Learn more about copyright in Medical Communications

CCC Marketplace

Solutions for the Medical Communications community

Reprints and Permissions Services

Annual Copyright License

RightFind Enterprise

RightFind Cite It

CCC takes a consultative approach with a mission to create solutions together.