Acceptable use of e-resources

The Library signs a licence with each publisher which governs the use of that publisher's online journals, databases, and other electronic resources: certain activities are permitted and others forbidden. Members of the university must ensure that their use of an online resource does not breach these licence conditions.

Licence terms vary, but in general the principles below apply.

Usually permitted

Authorised users, i.e. current staff and students at Salford, may usually:

• print a copy of an article for personal use (i.e. for research, teaching, private study) - but systematic downloading is usually forbidden, see below.
• download a copy of an article for personal use (research, teaching, private study)
• send a copy of an article to another authorised user

Sometimes permitted

Some licences permit authorised users, i.e. staff and students at Salford, to:

• incorporate articles or portions of articles into course packs for teaching use (each article or portion of an article should carry appropriate acknowledgement of its source, e.g. author, title, and "originally published in")
• make articles available through a secure intranet or Virtual Learning Environment for teaching use (each article should carry appropriate acknowledgement of its source in the link)

Usually forbidden

Licence terms will usually not allow you to:

• systematically download, save, or print articles from an online journal (e.g. all articles from one issue of a journal, or more content than could be reasonably consumed by a user)
• remove or alter attribution information (e.g. the authors' names, the journal title, the publisher's copyright notices)
• make multiple print or electronic copies (although use in course packs may be permitted, see above)
• mount articles on an internet server (although mounting on a Virtual Learning Environment may be permitted, see above)
• use articles for commercial use, including student placements
• send printed or electronic articles to unauthorised users (i.e. anyone who is not a student or a member of staff at Salford)
• alter, abridge, adapt or modify articles
• copy text into an AI tool (e.g. to summarise it), or use text to train an AI model.

Where licence terms are more restrictive than these general principles, we will note this on the e-resource record on Library Search and link to the full terms of use.

In general, if you want to use an online journal or database for anything other than making single copies for personal use, we advise you to consult the licence terms for that journal. Many online resources include a link to the terms and conditions of the licence. If not, please contact library-content@salford.ac.uk, and we will be able to provide you with more information.