However, it is also arguable that the image itself constitutes a single copyrighted work, especially where the image is highly creative. The safest course of action is to obtain permission from the copyright owner before using any image found on the Internet. Access restrictions has the greatest influence on tipping the factors in favor of fair use. A problem with making text available on any network is that it can be accessible by readers far beyond the intended audience. Restrictions on access through passwords or other systems can enable the instructor to argue that the purpose is solely to benefit the students and not to provide access for others.
Restrictions can also limit the potential adverse effect on the market for the original.
By limiting the range of users who may find the document, the instructor can minimize or eliminate any possibility that someone will retrieve the work from the network instead of purchasing a copy. Some critics of electronic reserves have argued that the educational purpose and the minimal market effects cannot be controlled because the electronic medium allows users to print, download, and transmit copies at little cost or effort and thereby undermine the restricted access. The instructor must closely monitor the nature of the material posted on reserves and the amount of material from the original source put on reserves. To have a copy of the e-mail is not the same thing as to own the copyright. In fact, almost all e-mail, as written, is copyrighted.