COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT, PLAGIARISM, AN UNSEEMLY SPAT OR A CASE OF ACADEMIC BAD MANNERS

Abstract

Plagiarism and copyright infringement are terms that are often used interchangeably in an academic environment. However, plagiarism is a broader concept than copyright infringement because it extends to the protection of ideas. Copyright protects ideas in their material form, and when reduced to material form, it does not protect the ideas themselves. This suggests then that academics are free to use the ideas of others provided they express them in their own way. However, such conduct would constitute plagiarism if the originator of those ideas was not acknowledged. An academic who has shared some thoughts or even his work with fellow academics may be justly peeved if no mention is made of his ideas when one of his colleagues publishes a paper on that exact (or a similar) topic. This article explores the question of acknowledging the contribution made by fellow academics to one’s work and whether a failure to do so is a case of copyright infringement (a criminal offence), plagiarism (a serious academic offence), or simply a case of academic bad manners.