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Four common business practices that could require a Text & Data Mining Licence

Text and data mining graphic

Text & Data Mining (“TDM”) is a powerful tool for businesses, providing them with the ability to extract valuable insights and actionable intelligence from huge amounts of text and visual information. However, using TDM on certain types of content might require a licence.

Here are four professional scenarios that could fall under that category:

  1. Market Research: Uncovering market dynamics and identifying new opportunities often involves analysing large volumes of reports, articles, social media posts, and other data sources. However, if your research involves processing copyrighted materials to gain insights into market dynamics and potential opportunities, a TDM Licence is likely required. This is especially true if you’re storing and processing copies of these resources to gain insights and identify trends.
  2. Customer Satisfaction Analysis: Whether it’s social media sentiment analysis or sifting through customer reviews, if you’re extracting insights from copyright protected content, you might need a TDM licence.
  3. Market Intelligence and Competitor Analysis: Understanding your market and competitors is vital for strategic decision-making. If your strategy involves analysing their websites, marketing materials, or industry reports using TDM tools, ensure you have a licence to avoid inadvertent copyright infringement.
  4. Content Aggregation: Compiling information from various sources like news articles, blogs, or social media posts to create summaries, reports, or other products could require a TDM licence. If you’re using automated tools to collect and analyse copyright protected content, you’ll need permission to do so legally.

If any of the above scenarios sound familiar, it could be time to review your data mining practices and ensure they are compliant.

Text and data mining offers incredible potential for businesses but using it on copyright protected content without permission could lead to infringement.

CLA’s new Text & Data Mining rights will allow organisations to store and analyse legally and process copies of copyright-protected published works for internal use while protecting the rights of rightsholders and creators.

For more information, visit: cla.co.uk/tdm-licensing

Disclaimer: This is not an exhaustive list. This article should not be considered as legal advice and should not be relied on when determining whether a particular use of work would infringe copyright. It is always best practice to seek the permission of the rights owner if unsure.