How to Protect Online Courses and Educational Materials

Legally reviewed by Thomas Lemler - founder of Lemler IP

Creating an online course takes a tremendous amount of time, effort, and creativity. Whether you teach business strategies, professional skills, creative techniques, or academic subjects, your lessons, videos, workbooks, and presentations are, believe it or not, valuable intellectual property. Unfortunately, digital content can be copied and distributed in a matter of seconds, making it important for you to think about legal protection. Read on and speak with a knowledgeable Washington, D.C. intellectual property lawyer from Lemler IP to learn more about how to protect online courses and educational materials so you can have peace of mind. Here are some of the questions you may have:

What Intellectual Property Rights Can Protect an Online Course?

Several different forms of intellectual property law may apply to educational materials, depending on what you have created. In many situations, more than one type of protection can work together. Some of the most common forms of protection are:

• Copyright for recorded lectures, written course materials, videos, graphics, worksheets, quizzes, and presentations.
• Trademark protection for your course name, logo, business name, or distinctive branding.
• Trade secret protection for confidential teaching methods, proprietary business systems, or nonpublic instructional processes that provide competitive value.
• Licensing agreements that establish how students may access and use your content.

How Can You Prevent Others From Copying Your Educational Content?

Nothing can guarantee that online materials will never be copied, however, several practical measures can discourage infringement and bolster your position if someone misuses your work. If you can, you should try and take the following steps to protect your IP:

• Registering copyrights for valuable course materials.
• Using clear copyright notices throughout your content.
• Including detailed terms of use before students access your materials.
• Limiting downloads when appropriate.
• Watermarking videos, downloadable documents, or presentations.
• Monitoring online marketplaces and websites for unauthorized copies (because hosting platforms are generally shielded from liability for user uploads, the burden rests entirely on you to identify infringement and issue takedown notices).
• Keeping records that document when your materials were created and updated.

If unauthorized copying occurs, an attorney may be able to help remedy the situation. Depending on the circumstances, legal remedies could include sending cease-and-desist letters, pursuing Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown requests, negotiating licensing agreements, or filing legal claims when necessary.

What Should You Do Before Launching an Online Course?

Many people wait until after infringement occurs before speaking with an attorney, but by then, valuable content may already have been distributed without permission. This is why course creators should plan ahead. Before ever launching a course, you should review the following checklist:

• Confirm that all written materials, graphics, music, photographs, and videos are either original or properly licensed.
• Determine whether your course title or brand should receive trademark protection.
• Register important copyrights when appropriate.
• Create student agreements that clearly explain permitted uses of course materials.
• Review contracts with instructors, contractors, designers, or video editors to confirm ownership of intellectual property.
• Develop a plan for responding if unauthorized copies appear online.

Finally, you should strongly consider retaining the services of a knowledgeable and dedicated Washington, D.C. intellectual property lawyer who can assess your IP, and, from there, determine the best way to protect it. Contact Lemler IP today to schedule a complimentary initial consultation and ensure your hard work is fully protected before you launch.