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Streaming Media at APU

Provides descriptions and links to licensed and freely available internet streaming video resources

Public Performance Rights

Public Performance Rights (PPR) is the legal right to publicly show a film. PPR is needed for student clubs, film series, general lectures, and common dorm areas.

PPR is not needed to: show a film in class as part of face-to-face teaching as part of regular curricula, to view a DVD at home, view a DVD in a dorm room, or view a DVD for in-person instruction.

Instructors seeking more information about showing media as part of a course, refer to Chapter 1, Section 110, of Title 17 United States Code (USC) (see page 24 of the following link)

Many of the Library's educational titles are purchased on DVD and include PPR and may be shown as long as no admission is charged. With a few exceptions, TV series and feature films are not purchased with PPR.

Regarding streaming video:

  • Academic Video Online: https://apu.libguides.com/az/academic-video-online-premium-avon
    • All films* purchased or subscribed to through Alexander Street, whether streaming or DVD, include limited public performance rights. This includes permission for classroom showings and on-campus or in-library public screenings, as long as no admission is charged.
    • *Excluding FILM PLATFORM and National Theatre titles and titles listed under "my institution's content" with the publisher Good Docs.  National Theatre titles can be used in a classroom or a lecture room for teaching purposes.
  • Kanopy films will vary. Those that have public performance rights will display a PPR icon. 
  • Swank films vary and will be reviewed on a title-by-title basis, and will most likely incur an extra fee.

Several licensing companies have either purchased rights or will negotiate rights and work with colleges to license commercial films. The cost for licensing commercial films ranges from $100 to several thousand, depending on the work and the copyright owner. The group organizing the event will be responsible for the extra fee. 

Ask the copyright owner for permission to show the content for free or at a reduced rate. The copyright owner is most often the United States distributor of the film. You can find out who this is by going to the Internet Movie Database, searching for the film or TV show, looking for the company credits page (most likely found by scrolling to the bottom), and on this page, looking for the USA distributors.

If Swank or Kanopy does not handle the PPR for the film you are showing, here are some additional distributors to contact:

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. Contact us.