Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

Non-profit use of a copyrighted material is not a defense for copyright infringement. So if you want to use a copyrighted material you will need to obtain permission for the copyright owner.

If you are looking for short clips to use for your video, there are companies out there that sells licenses to movie clips for the purpose you are seeking. To protect yourself from a copyright infringement lawsuit you may want to use these companies or obtain a specific license from the owner of the work you want to use.

If you have more questions, feel free to contact me.

Kind regards,

Jim Betinol

Tel. 424-229-2560

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.wibelaw.com

No. Profit has nothing to do with copyright infringement, and there are statutory damages that may be awarded even if the copyright holder has not actually been damaged. The range is $300 to $150,000 per infringement. (In the case of a video, that's PER COPY of the video.) If you are aware that the material is copyrighted and use it anyway, the penalty is the upper end of the range.