Copyright Requests

Copyright Procedures and Guidelines

All OA literature, including digital media, and the OA logo are protected under US copyright law, and that copyright is owned solely by Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. No one, including OA members or service bodies, can legally reprint or reproduce digital media or excerpts from OA literature without written permission from the World Service Office. (See exceptions below.) See the Reprint Permission form for additional policies.

To apply for reprint or logo use permission, use these forms:

• • Reprint Permission Form
  • Permission to Use the OA Logo Form
  • Permission to Use the OA Logo Form (editable DOCX version)

Allow 10 working days for approval. You will receive the form back from the WSO affixed with the managing director’s signature, indicating that permission has been granted. Remember to cite the source in your material.

Audio Recordings

Registered groups and service bodies wishing to create a lending library of digital media may request permission to duplicate a CD or digital file using the reprint request procedures above. Approval will allow the service body to keep one master recording and one copy to lend out to members. Recordings sold by WSO or its designated vendor, including recordings created at World Service Business Conference and World Service Convention or sold via the OA bookstore, whether on CD or in other formats may not be duplicated and distributed via website or other media, except the case of radio and television public service announcements, which may be duplicated without written permission for public information purposes.

Using the OA logo

OA, Inc. holds the trademark on the names Overeaters Anonymous and OA, the logo art, and logotype. Your group or service body’s name must be printed directly beneath the OA logo to distinguish it from material originating from the WSO. Any registered OA service body (intergroup, NSB, LSB, and region) may apply for blanket permission for specific uses. It is the responsibility of the group or service body to renew its logo permission after the expiration date. See the Permission to Use the OA Logo form for additional policies.

Items not needing written permission

All registered OA groups and service bodies have permission to reprint any OA print material currently on the OA website (downloadable PDF files or text) without having to submit a written request to the WSO. This does not include permission to reprint photographs or illustrations on the OA website. When reprinting free downloaded material from the OA website, remember that these documents are updated often. If your group or service body posts or distributes a free download, we encourage you to check staging.oa.org regularly for updated material. The materials listed below may also be reprinted without written permission. When using OA material, cite the source and include the following: Copyright Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. All rights reserved.

All registered OA groups and service bodies also have permission to translate and reprint any OA print material currently on the OA website (downloadable PDF files or text) and the materials listed below without written permission. This does not include permission to reprint photographs or illustrations on the OA website. The translated manuscript must include the following in the language of the translation: This is a translation of OA-approved literature. © [date of translation] Copyright Overeaters Anonymous, Inc. All rights reserved.

The group or service body is also required to provide a digital copy of the published translated literature to the WSO. The digital copy can be in PDF or text format and should include the English-language name of the translated publication, the language of translation, and the group or service body name and registration number.