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Technology Enhanced Learning Team
  1. Technology Enhanced Learning Team
  2. Our Technologies
  3. QMplus Media
  4. QMplus Media Policies

QMplus Media Policies

Key Points to Note

  • Videos cannot be edited 15 months after they are uploaded. If you are the owner of the video, you will receive an email confirming the upcoming loss of editing rights 20 days prior. This change does not affect playback and publishing, only editing. 
  • If you delete a video from QMplus Media, that video cannot be restored. It is very important that you keep a copy of your uploaded video on your computer or an external storage device. 
  • If your media features another person, then please make sure that they complete a QMplus Media Video Consent Form [PDF 221KB]. 
  • If you are from the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, then please complete the QMplus Media FMD Video Consent Form [PDF 90KB] in addition to the generic form above. 

1. Copyright

Please note you can learn more about copyright at QMUL in general by visiting the library services pages. 

1.1 Sound and video recordings, films and TV broadcasts are valuable learning resources. The use of them in an educational context is covered under the UK copyright law. When uploading to the media server make sure that your uploaded content, including images, music, videos etc. are copyright compliant. It is your responsibility to make sure that your uploaded videos do not infringe copyright.

1.2 Video / audio files uploaded to the media server that are not owned by QMUL must be encoded with a copyright notice giving full credit to the copyright holder. This should be added to the description and include a title, the author / creator, and the date of creation. 

1.3 Owning a physical or digital media file of a film or TV programme does not allow you to copy and upload it to QMplus Media. You must contact the copyright owner to secure permission to make the recording available for educational purposes before uploading. 

1.4 You may upload a clip from a film or a TV show, provided the purpose is for illustration or instruction and the clip is a 'fair' portion of the whole - though there is no legal definition of 'fair'. Restricting access to the participants who are enrolled on the course will support the contention that the use is fair. Also, the use must be non-commercial and sufficiently acknowledged. 

1.5 You may be able to use short extracts of music in teaching if it is for the purposes of illustration, instruction, criticism, or review. Once again, the amount copied must be considered 'fair'. If you would like to use a whole piece of music or if your usage impacts commercially on the rights holder, then you would need permission from three parties: the composer, the music publisher and the record company. 

1.6 A video uploaded to QMUL's online learning environment (QMplus) can be accessed by those staff and students registered on the course from anywhere in the world. Where you are seeking permission from a copyright owner, you must make it clear where your students are typically based. 

2. Permission and Consent

2.1 You may upload videos or audio you have created or that you own. However, if these videos feature other individuals, you need to make sure that you have obtained their written permission. This should be done at the time of recording by asking the individuals concerned to sign a consent form which states the limits within which you may broadcast, exhibit or distribute the recording. If you do not have signed consent, you should collect this retrospectively before uploading the content to QMplus Media (Kaltura). You can use this QMplus Media Video Consent Form [PDF 221KB] to obtain consent. If you are from the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, then please complete the QMplus Media FMD Video Consent Form [PDF 90KB] in addition to the generic form above. 

3. TV Recordings and Creative Commons

3.1 QMUL holds the ERA (Educational Recording Agency) license that allows QMUL staff to record, store and make available TV and radio broadcasts (within the UK). You may upload clips of TV programmes that have previously been aired on UK channels. However, you are advised not to upload full TV programmes as they will require a large amount of disk space. You should add a link or refer students to the source video if the programme clip is longer than 30 minutes. 

3.2 Box of Broadcasts (BOB) is a service provided by the university that provides a shared online off-air TV and radio recording service. You can choose to record any broadcast programme from 60+ TV and radio channels, schedule recordings in advance, edit programmes into clips, create playlists, and embed clips into QMplus. 

3.3 Some widely available media content has Creative Commons licenses attached to them. These licenses allow users to embed or reuse videos for personal and educational use, but you must ensure that you properly attribute according to the terms of the license. 

4. Ownership of the Uploaded Content

4.1 Videos you upload are considered teaching materials, and in most cases will belong to QMUL. Please refer to the QMUL IPR Policy for more information. Section 4 specifically covers teaching and administrative materials. 

5. Data Retention

5.1 Any videos you upload to QMplus Media (Kaltura) are available for publishing and playback indefinitely. You will only have the ability to edit them for 15 months after the date you uploaded them. After this time, videos are no longer editable. You will receive an email 20 days before you lost editing rights on any of your videos reminding you of this policy.

5.2 Please see the full data retention policy below. 

6. General Guidance

6.1 If you ask your students to upload content to QMplus Media as part of their course, then you must make them aware of the guidance provided in these terms of use. 

6.2 While there is no maximum file size that can be uploaded to QMplus Media, we recommend that you try to limit your file sizes where possible. Large files may take a long time to upload, particularly on a domestic internet connection. Try chunking presentations into shorter segments. 6 to 10 minutes being an optimum length for online viewing. 

6.3 Services such as YouTube, Vimeo etc. are a valuable and popular source of videos for use in teaching and learning. However, you should exercise care when using these sources as many videos are uploaded illegally without the rights holders' permission. The best practice is to only use or refer to videos from official channels on YouTube or any other video service. YouTube videos should not be downloaded or stored for teaching purposes unless you have obtained specific consent from the owner. 

6.4 When using videos of presentations (e.g. PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi etc), please ensure that any images used in your slides are appropriately attributed. 

6.5 You can enable your QMplus Media videos to be downloaded by students and others. However, if you decide to do so you need to be aware that your videos could be further distributed without your knowledge or consent. Students should note that downloading materials from QMplus Media without prior consent of the content owner, will be a breach of QMUL IT Policy. 

6.6 If you delete a video from the Media server, that video cannot be restored. It is very important that you keep a copy of your uploaded video on your computer or an external storage device. 

Useful Links

Data Retention Policy

Any videos you upload to QMplus Media (Kaltura) are available for publishing and playback indefinitely. You can edit them for 15 months after the date you uploaded them. After this time, videos are no longer editable. You will receive an email 20 days before you lose editing rights on any of your videos reminding you of this policy. This policy does not affect playback and publishing. Your videos will always be playable wherever you have published them, and you will continue to be able to publish them wherever you want. 

After 15 months, you will no longer be able to make any edits to the video which require using the online editor, such as topping and tailing, or chopping pieces out of the middle. You will still be able to do things like change the title / description of your video, add chapters and hotspots, generate captions, replace the video with a new one, or turn your video into a video quiz. 

Removing the ability for people to edit videos allows us to meet our contractual obligations regarding reasonable use, and ensures videos can still be played and published. We have agreed on a 15-month editing window as being workable for most of our users. 

If you have a local copy of the original video, you can upload this to QMplus Media. If you no longer have a copy of the original video, you can download the original from QMplus Media. You will need to do this before you lose your editing rights. 

If the 15-month editing window has passed, you can still download a version from QMplus Media. This may not, however, be the same resolution as the original. 

See our guide on How can I download a copy of my QMplus Media? for further instructions. 

No. Anything you have submitted for assessment will still be playable. 

Yes. Your students will be able to play your videos. It is only your ability to edit them that is affected. 

Yes. You can continue to publish your videos wherever you need them - in QMplus, on websites - it is only the ability to edit them that is affected. 

Raise a ticket via the Service Desk and a member of the support team will get back to you as soon as they can. Ensure that you state in your ticket that your query relates to QMplus Media (Kaltura). 

Learn more about raising a ticket on the QMUL website. 

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