Copyright Basics

(C) 2007 Adler LAw Group Safeguarding Ideas, Relationships and Talent (R)

Copyright Basics What is Copyright?

Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution grants Congress the power ... “To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.” The Copyright Act of 1976 (the “Act”) provides specific rights and remedies to authors of original creative works fixed in any tangible medium of expression, whether published or not.

What does copyright protect?

The Copyright Act of 1976 protects creative expression: literary, dramatic, and musical works; pantomimes and dance; pictorial, graphic and sculptural works; audio-visual works; sound recordings; and architectural works. Essentially, any original “expression” is eligible for copyright protection as soon as it is fixed in a tangible form.

Almost any original expression that is fixed in a tangible form is protected as soon as it is expressed. A tangible form includes the electronic medium: a graphic file created in any graphics editing software program is protected as soon as the file is saved to disk. A web page is protected as soon as you stop typing and save it as a .html file. As you can see, most of the items that you are likely to encounter on the Internet are eligible for copyright protection, including the text of web pages, contents of email and Usenet messages, sound files, graphics files and so on.

Although no longer necessary, notice on copyrighted material avoids any uncertainty that it is copyrighted. The four elements of Notice are the copyright symbol, the term “Copyright,” the year of copyright, the name of the copyright holder, and the phrase “All Rights Reserved.”

For example:

Copyright © 2000 David M. Adler, Esq.

All Rights Reserved However, items like Ideas, Facts, Titles, Names, Short phrases, and Blank forms are not eligible for copyright protection. Also duration of the protection afforded by copyright Duration of protection lasts depends in large part on when the work in question was created. Whether the work was created before or after January 1, 1978 could have substantial affect on the life-span of the copyright.

If published before 1978, the copyright expires 75 years from the date of publication (if the copyright was renewed). If published after 1978, the copyright will expire on December 31, 2002. If published between 1978 and the present and the copyright is owned by an individual the copyright will last for the life of the author, plus an additional 50 years. If published between 1978 and the present and the copyright owned by employer of author, the copyright will last 75 years from the date of publication, or 100 years from the date of creation, whichever occurs first.

What Material Can One Use?

Obviously one may use any original material one creates: graphics, audio, text, or video. One may also license material to use on web pages or in catalogs. If an item like a picture was created by someone else and the copyright has not expired, then permission must be sought for the right to use that item from the copyright owner. Essentially, when one buys a clipart CD one is also buying a license. A license will spell out how the image may be used, how much it would cost to use the image, and any other conditions and restrictions.

One may also use works deemed in the “Public Domain.” The Public Domain contains all works that for whatever reason are not protected by copyright. As such, they are free for all to use without permission. Works in the Public Domain include characteristics such as: a lost copyright, an expired copyright, owned or authored by the federal government, specifically granted to public domain, or just non-copyrightable.

Why should I register my copyright?

As described earlier, a work is copyrighted as soon as it is created, but there are some advantages to registering your work with the Copyright Office. In order to sue for “statutory damages” from infringement of a work, a work must be registered with the Copyright Office. However, one may register after the infringement occurs.

To register a copyright, file the appropriate form with the U.S. Copyright Office, including the payment for registration costs. Check with the Copyright Office to get the current fees.



Copyright Basics - To learn more about this author, visit David M. Adler's Website.

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