A copyright is a form of protection provided by U.S. law toanyone who creates “original works of authorship.” Essentially, acopyright protects literary, musical, dramatic, artistic and otherqualifying creative works. The Copyright Act of 1976 furtherclarified copyright protection: A copyright owner now has theexclusive right to reproduce the work; prepare spin-off works basedon the copyrighted work; and to sell, perform and/or display thecopyrighted work in public.
One of the nice things about copyrights is that securing suchprotection is fairly straightforward. Copyright protection iscreated the moment your work is fixed in a “tangible form ofexpression” (paper copy, CD, disk, videotaped performance, and thelike) for the first time. In other words, once your story is put inwriting, your song is transcribed as sheet music or recorded, oryour creative work is given some fixed form, your copyright isautomatically secured. From that moment on (assuming creationoccurred after January 1, 1978), your work has copyright protectionfor your lifetime, plus 50 years after your death.
It’s sometimes confusing as to exactly who is the owner of awork’s copyright protection. When just one author is involved, heor she can rightfully claim copyright. If the work was acollaborative effort between several authors, each author becomes aco-owner of the copyright. Co-ownership means each author has therights to the work–all owners would have to agree to sell theirrights for someone to have exclusive ownership of the work. Forthis reason, it’s a good idea to have an agreement drawn upbeforehand as to who will own the copyright. The term of copyrightin a co-authorship situation is 50 years after the last survivingauthor’s death.
If the work was commissioned or created as part of the creator’sjob, the employer is considered to be the author. After all, theauthor was paid for the work with wages. In this case, the term ofcopyright is calculated differently. If copies of the work aredistributed to the public for sale, that first date of sale iscalled the publication date. The term of copyright protection iscalculated as 75 years from the publication date or 100 years fromthe creation date; whichever is shorter. (For a larger list ofcopyright terms, visit this list provided by Cornell University.)
Works on which you’re able to obtain a copyright fall into eightcategories: literary works; musical works; dramatic works;pictorial, graphic and sculptural works; sound recordings;pantomimes and choreographic works; audiovisual works; andarchitectural works. These categories are interpreted very broadly.For example, software may be registered as a literary work; maps aspictorial, graphic and sculptural works; and a children’s slide asan architectural work.
On the flip side, several categories of material are noteligible for federal copyright protection. Works that have not beenfixed as a copy aren’t eligible. Titles, names, short phrases andslogans aren’t eligible for copyright either because they’recovered under trademark protection. Mere listings, such asingredients or phone numbers, are also ineligible. Works that arenothing more than common property and contain no originalauthorship–such as standard calendars or rulers–can’t beprotected by copyright. And works by the U.S. government aren’teligible for copyright protection because they were paid for bytaxpayers and thus are free for anyone’s use.
When you see the letter “C” enclosed in a circle, you’re beinginformed the work is declaring copyright privileges. This symbolused to be required under U.S. law but isn’t required today. Workscreated before March 1, 1989, when the requirement was lifted, mustcontinue to display the notice in the proper format–for example:©1999 John Doe. Regardless, it’s generally considered a good ideato display the notice because it informs the public that the workis protected by copyright. If the work is infringed on and thecopyright mark appears on the work, no weight will be given to adefendant’s argument that infringement was an innocent mistake.
Registering your copyright with the U.S. CopyrightOffice isn’t a requirement for copyright protection. However,copyright laws provide several advantages to those copyright ownerswho take the time to register. A formal registration establishes apublic record of your copyright claim. Should someone infringe onyour copyright, in order to file an infringement lawsuit, your workmust first be registered. With a registered copyright, you’reentitled to claim not only actual damages, but statutory damagesand attorneys’ fees as well. And registration will allow you torecord your ownership with the U.S. Customs Service for protectionagainst the importation of infringing copies. Registration of worksmay be done at any time within the life of the copyright.
