Prelinger Archives: Licensing, Access, Collections

 

IF YOU NEED ARCHIVAL OR STOCK FOOTAGE, PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE PAGE BEFORE CONTACTING US.

1. Archival and stock footage from Prelinger Archives is licensed only through our exclusive representative, Archive Films by Getty Images. They offer rapid access to all available material. They can research the collection for specific topics and deliver highest-quality material very quickly in all formats. They warrant that footage is clear for your use and supply written license agreements. They charge license fees for use of footage and require that the physical materials they lend be returned when your production is finished.

If you are in need of stock footage, please contact them as follows:

Archive Films by Getty Images
75 Varick Street
New York, NY 10013 USA
+1 (646) 613-4100 (voice)
+1 (646) 613-4601 (fax)
+1 (800) 876-5115 (tollfree in USA)
filmsales@gettyimages.com

2. Many key items are also available for free viewing and downloading through the Internet Archive. This site hosts digital video files representing approximately 1,800 key films from the Prelinger collection. We anticipate that the films on this site will satisfy most research requests. Most users will find that a broadband connection (DSL, cable modem, etc.) is required to download files that are often very large. The MPEG-2 files are high-quality but compressed, and thus lack some of the detail, resolution and fluidity of conventional broadcast-quality video. They are, however, excellent for research, screening, teaching and low-end production use. We are proud to be a charter collaborator with Creative Commons.

If you require a written license agreement, please contact Archive Films by Getty Images. No other entity is authorized to license stock footage from Prelinger Archives. The Internet Archive does NOT furnish written license agreements nor make any warranties or representations as to the footage other than what may be stated on its website. In addition, please be aware that the Internet Archive hosts other collections besides Prelinger Archives on its site, and some of these collections may carry certain restrictions that differ from the Prelinger Archives. The Internet Archive does NOT furnish copies of these films on videotape, DVD, hard disks or other physical media.

No permission is needed to download or reuse data files that you have downloaded from the Prelinger Collection at the Internet Archive. We warmly encourage you to download, view, and use the data files in any manner that you wish, although we ask that you not resell them as stock footage or charge anyone for the files that you have downloaded, as we wish them to remain free to all. You may download data files from the Prelinger Collection at the Internet Archive, incorporate them into your own production, and distribute, sell or license your own production in any way you please. If you require a written license agreement, however, please contact Archive Films by Getty Images. No other entity is authorized to license stock footage from Prelinger Archives.

All titles hosted by the Internet Archive are available in MPEG-2 format (.mpg files) playable on PC-compatible machines equipped with hardware decoder boards or compatible software players, or Macintoshes equipped with the QuickTime Player MPEG-2 plugin, available from The Apple Store. We also recommend the open-source VLC player. These are large files (10 minutes of video equals about 250 MB) and as such are downloadable but not streamable. Many titles are also available in the more compact DivX;) format (.avi files) playable on computers equipped with appropriate MPEG-4 codecs and players; VCD (MPEG-1 format), playable on Macintoshes and PCs using the QuickTime Player; MPEG-4; "editable" MPEG-4 files suitable for import into Final Cut Pro; and two streamable RealPlayer formats, one suitable for dialup users, the other for broadband. For more information about this project, including information on downloading and compatible players, please visit the Internet Archive website.

3. The Prelinger Archives film collection was acquired by the Library of Congress in August 2002. The Library has not yet processed the collection and cannot currently fulfill most research requests. The film materials are presently in storage pending the opening of the Library's new National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia, scheduled to open in 2006. However, Prelinger Archives holds approximately 4000 titles in video and digital formats, which are all available immediately through Getty Images and the Internet Archive (see above). Prelinger Archives retains the exclusive right to duplicate films and footage from its collection that are now held by the Library of Congress for twelve years.

If you need technical support regarding the Internet Archive, you may address questions and issues to Archive Support or consult the archives of the moviearchive mailing list.

We ask that you you credit Prelinger Archives and the Internet Archive (www.archive.org/movies/prelinger.php) for films or footage that you use. We'd also like to see what you've made using our footage if you are interested in sending us a copy (address here), but this is your choice.

PRELINGER ARCHIVES ACCESS POLICY
Prelinger Archives, a private corporation, is committed to providing public access to its collections, subject to time and staff limitations, availability, condition or preservation status of specific materials, and the impact of the requester's project upon the cultural and social landscape. We offer five primary access alternatives:

  • Stock footage, for those wishing to incorporate footage into a program or project (see above);
  • Program licensing, for those wishing to use a film in its entirety or for use as programming (see below);
  • The Internet Archive, an online archive that offers digitized versions of 1,800 key titles in our collection for free downloading and reuse (see above);
  • Products, videodiscs, CD-ROMs and videotapes of key films and film segments from the collection;
  • Other access to Prelinger Archives, available when no other alternative meets the needs of the requester (see below).

    Program licensing
    Prelinger Archives retains the right to license films in their entirety or for use as programming. Please contact us to discuss your need for archival films as program content in all media and markets.

    Other access to Prelinger Archives
    We provide access to researchers, scholars, noncommercial users and interested members of the public, subject to certain time and resource limitations. We prefer to fulfill as many research needs as possible through the facilities of the Internet Archive (see above). If you wish to access our archives for other purposes, please contact Rick Prelinger.

    Access to the Prelinger Archives database
    The portion of our database representing film available for stock footage licensing is available through the Archive Films by Getty Images website or through Footage.net.

    Collections summary (224K)
    A general introduction to the archives, with descriptions of 69 individual collections.

     

    A Short History of Prelinger Archives, Part I
    The first part of an ongoing narrative. Part II is now in preparation.

      

    August 17, 2006

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