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Part 1: What Copyright Is ------------------------- On January 1, 1978, the Copyright Act of 1976 (title 17 of the United States Code) came into effect. This general revision of the copyright law of the United States, the first such revision since 1909, made important changes in our copyright system and superseded the previous federal copyright statute. Copyright is a form of protection provided by the laws of the United States (title 17, U.S. Code) to the authors of "original works of authorship" including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works. This protection is available to both published and unpublished works. Section 106 of the Copyright Act generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to do and to authorize others to do the following: - To reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; - To prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; - To distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; - To perform the copyrighted work publically, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audivisual works, and - To display the copyrighted work publically, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work. It is illegal for anyone to violate any of the rights provided by the Act to the owner of copyright. These rights, however, are not unlimited in scope. Sections 107 through 118 of the Copyright Act establish limitations on these rights. In some cases, these limitations are specified exemptions from copyright liability. One major limitation is the doctrine of "fair use," which is given a statutory basis by Section 107 of the Act. In other instances, the limitation takes the form of a "compulsory license" under which certain limited uses of copyrighted works are permitted upon payment of specified royalties and compliance with statutory conditions. Part 2: Who Can Claim Copyright ------------------------------- Copyright protection subsists from the time the work is created in fixed form: that is, it is incident of the process of authorship. The copyright in the work of authorship IMMEDIATELY becomes the property of the author who created it. Only the author or those deriving their rights through the author can rightfully claim copyright. In the case of works made for hire, the employer and not the employee is presumptively considered the author. Section 101 of the Copyright Act defines a "work made for hire" as: (1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment; or (2) a work specially ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a collective work, as part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, as a translation, as a supplementary work, as a compilation, as an instructional text, as a test, as answer material for a test, or as an atlas, if the parties expressly agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work will be considered a work made for hire.... The authors of a joint work are co-owners of the copyright in the work, unless there is an agreement to the contrary. Copyright in each separate contribution to a periodical or other collective work is distinct from copyright in the collective work as a whole and vests initially with the author of the contribution. Two General Principles ---------------------- - Mere ownership of a book, manuscript, painting, or any other copy or phonorecord does not give the possessor the copyright. The law provides that transfer of ownership of any material object that embodies a protected work does not of itself convey any rights in the copyright. - Minors may claim copyright, but state laws may regulate the business dealings involving copyrights owned by minors. For information on relevant state laws, consult an attorney in your state. AUTHOR'S ADDENDUM The determination of what constitutes a "work for hire" under the Copyright Act is based upon common law agency principles, and not upon who has the right to control the product or has actual control of the product, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 5 (COMMUNITY FOR CREATIVE NON-VIOLENCE v. REID). The court, in an opinion by Justice Marshall, ruled that a statue, dramatizing the plight of the homeless, which was commissioned by the Community for Creative Non-Violence, a non-profit group whose mission is to eradicate homelessness, is not a work for hire, although the court noted that CCNV could still be found to be a joint author. Section 101 of the Copuright Act, 17 USC 101, provides that a work is "for hire" under two possible circumstances: first, a work can be "prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment," 17 USE 101(1), or, as specified in 17 USC 101(2), a work can be specially ordered or commissioned as part of a collective work, a movie or other audiovisual work, a translation, a supplementary work, a compilation, an isstructional text, a test, or an atlas. The parties agreed that the statue did not satisfy the requirements of 17 USE 101(2), so the only issue was whether it could be considered a "work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment." CCNV, supported by amicus briefs filed by publishers, asserted that a work created by an independent contractor can be a work for hire under 17 USC 101(1) if the employer retains the right to control the product, or if the employer has actually wielded control with respect to the creation of a particular work. In a joint brief, the Magazine Publishers of America Inc., the Hearst Corp., The New York Times Co., Playboy Enterprises, and Time Inc. said that magazine and newspaper publishers "shape and direct" the creative process, and that they must be able to rely upon work for hire relationships with contributors they supervise and direct. Neither of the "control" tests "is consistent with the text of the act," the court said. "Section 101 clearly delineates between works prepared by an employee and commissioned works. Sound though other distinctions might be as a matter of copyright policy, there is no statutory support for an additional dichotomy between commissioned works that are actually controlled and supervised by the hiring party and those that are not." The hiring party's right to control the product "simply is not determinative," the court said. The term "employee" as used in 17 USC 101(1) "should be understood in light of the general common law of agency," the court said. Using that criterion, the court found that the sculptor, James Earl Reid, was not a CCNV employee, noting that Reid supplied his own tools, worked in his own studio, was retained by CCNV for only two months, and was paid a specific sum contingent upon completion of the specific job. CCNV paid no payroll or social security taxes for Reid, provided no employee benefits, and did not contribute to any unemployment insurance or workers' compensation funds, the court said. Part 3: Copyright and National Origin of the Work ------------------------------------------------- Copyright protection is available for all unpublished works, regardless of the nationality or domicile of the author. Published works are eligible for copyright protection in the United States if either of the following conditions are met: - On the date of first publication, one or more of the authors is a national or domiciliary of the United States or is a national or domiciliary, or soverign authority of a foreign nation that is a party to a copyright treaty to which the U.S. is also a party, or is a stateless person wherever that person may be domiciled; or - The work is first published in the United States or in a foreign nation that, on the date of the first publication, is a party to the Universal Copyright Convention; or the work comes within the scope of a Presidential proclamation. The Manufacturing Clause ------------------------ The manufacturing clause in the copyright law, section 601 of the 1976 Copyright Act (title 17, U.S. Code), expired July 1, 1986. What Works Are Protected ------------------------ Copyright protects "original works of authorship" that are fixed in a tangible form of expression. The fixation need not be directly perceptible, so long as it may be communicated with the aid of a machine or device. Copyrightable works include the following categories: (1) literary works; (2) musical works, including any accompanying words; (3) dramatic works, including any accompanying music; (4) pantomimes and choreographic works; (5) pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works; (6) motion pictures and other audiovisual works; and (7) sound recordings. These categories should be viewed quite broadly: for example, computer programs and most "compilations" are registrable as "literary works"; maps and architectural blueprints are registerable as "pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works." Part 4: What Is Not Protected By Copyright ------------------------------------------ Several categories of material are generally not eligible for statutory copyright protection. These include among others: - Works that have NOT been fixed in a tangible form of expression. For example, choreographic works that have not been notated or recorded, or improvisational speeches or performances that have not been written or recorded. - Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents. - Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a description, explanation, or illustration. - Works consisting ENTIRELY of information that is common property and containing no original authorship. For example: standard calendars, height and weight charts, tape measures and rulers, and lists or tables taken from public documents or other common sources. How To Secure A Copyright ------------------------- The way in which copyright protection is secured under the present law is frequently misunderstood. No publication or registration or other action in the Copyright Office is required to secure copyright. There are, however, certain definite advantages to registration. (See NOTE below.) Copyright is secured AUTOMATICALLY when the work is created, and a work is "created" when it is fixed in a copy or phonorecord for the first time. In general, "copies" are material objects from which a work can be read or visually perceived either directly or with the aid of a machine or device, such as books, manuscripts, sheet music, film, videotape, or microfilm. "Phonorecords" are material objects embodying faxations of sounds (excluding, by statutory definition, motion picture soundtracks), such as audio tapes and phonograph disks. Thus, for example, a song (the "work") can be fixed in sheet music ("copies") or in phonograph disks ("phonorecords"), or both. If a work is prepared over a period, the part of the work that is fixed on a particular date constitutes the created work as of that date. NOTE: Before 1978, statutory copyright was generally secured by the act of publication with notice of copyright, assuming compliance with all other relevant statutory conditions. Works in the public domain on January 1, 1978 (for example, works published without satisfying all conditions for securing statutory copyright under the Copyright Act of 1909) remain in the public domain under the current Act. Statutory copyright could also be secured before 1978 by the act of registration in the case of certain unpublished works and works eligible for ad interim copyright. The current Act automatically extends to full term (section 304 sets the term) copyright for all works in which ad interim copyright was subsisting or was capable of being secured on December 31, 1977. AUTHOR'S ADDENDUM Anyone wishing to obtain a copyright should write to the Copyright Office (address below) and request the appropriate forms. Write to: Copyright Office LM 455 Library of Congress Washington, D.C. 20559 NOTE: The Copyright Office itself is not permitted to give legal advice. If you need information or guidance on matters such as disputes over the ownership of a copyright, suits against possible infringers, the procedure for getting a work published, or the method of obtaining royalty payments, it may be necessary to consult with an attorney. Part 5: Publication ------------------- Publication is no longer the key to obtaining statutory copyright as it was under the Copyright Act of 1909. However, publication remains important to copyright owners. The Copyright Act defines publication as follows: "Publication" is the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of owner- ship, or by rental, lease, or lending. The offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display, constitutes publication. A public perform- ance or display of a work does not of itself constitute publication. A further discussion of the definition of "publication" can be found in the legislative history of the Act. The legislative reports define "to the public" as distribution to persons under no explicit or implicit restrictions with respect to disclosure of the contents. The reports state that the definition makes it clear that the sale of phonorecords constitutes publication of the underlying work, for example, the musical, dramatic, or literary work embodied in a phonorecord. The reports also state that it is clear that any form of dissemination in which the material object does not change hands, for example, performances or displays on television, is NOT a publication no matter how many people are exposed to the work. However, when copies of phonorecords are offered for sale or lease to a group of wholesalers, broadcasters, or motion picture theaters, publication does takes place if the purpose is further distribution, public performance, or public display. Publication is an important concept in the copyright law for several reasons: - When a work is published, all published copies should bear a notice of copyright. (See Part 6 at a later date) - Works that are published with notice of copyright in the United States are subject to mandatory deposit with the Library of Congress. - Publication of a work can affect the limitations on the exclusive rights of the copyright owner that are set forth in sections 107 through 118 of the law. - The year of publication may determine the duration of copyright protection for anonymous and pseudonymous works (when the author's identity is not revealed in the records of the Copyright Office) and for works made for hire. - Deposit requirements for registration of published works differ from those for registration of unpublished works. Part 6: Notice of Copyright --------------------------- When a work is published under the authority of the copyright owner, a notice of copyright should be placed on all publicly distributed copies and on all publicly distributed phonorecords of sound recordings. This notice is required even on works published outside of the United States. Failure to comply with the notice requirement can result in the loss of certain additional rights otherwise available to the copyright owner. The use of the copyright notice is the responsibility of the copyright owner and does not require advance permission from, or registration with, the Copyright Office. As mentioned earlier, use of the notice makes the published works subject to mandatory deposit requirements. Form of Notice for Visually Perceptible Copies The notice for visually perceptible copies should contain all of the following three elements: (1) The SYMBOL (c) -- the letter C in a circle -- or the word "Copyright," of the abbreviation "Copr."; and (2) THE YEAR OF FIRST PUBLICATION of the work. In the case of compilations or derivative works incorporating previously published material, the year date of first publication of the compilation or derivative work is sufficient. The year date may be omitted where a pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work, with accompanying textual matter, if any, is reproduced in or on greeting cards, postcards, stationery, jewelry, dolls, toys, or any useful article; and (3) THE NAME OF THE OWNER OF COPYRIGHT in the work, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized, or a generally known alternative designation of the owner. Examples: (c) 1989 VITRON Management Consulting, Inc. Copyright 1989 James J. Spinelli (c) Copyright 1989 RelayNet The "(c)" notice is required only on "visually perceptible copies." Certain kinds of works -- for example, musical, dramatic, and literary works -- may be fixed not in "copies" but by means of sound in an audi recording. Since audio recordings such as audio tapes and phonograph disks are "phonorecords" and not "copies," there is no requirement that the phonorecord bear a "(c)" notice to protect the underlying musical, dramatic, or literary work that is recorded. Form of Notice for Phonorecords of Sound Recordings The copyright notice for phonorecords of sound recordings has somewhat different requirements. (Sound recordings are defined as "works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds, but not including the sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work, regardless of the nature of the material objects, such as disks, tapes, or other phonorecords, in which they are embodied.") The notice appearing on phonorecords should contain the following three elements: 1. The SYMBOL (p) -- the letter P in a circle; and 2. The YEAR OF FIRST PUBLICATION of the sound recording; and 3. THE NAME OF THE OWNER OF COPYRIGHT in the sound recording, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized, or a generally known alternative designation of the owner. If the producer of the sound recording is named on the phonorecord labels or containers, and if no other name appears in conjunction with the notice, the producer's name shall be considered a part of the notice. Example: (p) 1989 A.B.C., Inc. NOTE: Because of problems that might result in some cases from the use of variant forms of the notice, any form of the notice other than those given above should not be used without first seeking legal advice. Position of Notice ------------------ The notice should be affixed to copies or phonorecords of the work in such a manner and location as to "give reasonable notice of the claim of copyright." The norice on phonorecords may appear on the surface of the phonorecord or on the phonorecord label or container, provided the manner of placement and location give reasonable notice of the claim. The three elements of the notice should ordinarily appear together on the copies or phonorecords. Publications Incorporating United States Government Works --------------------------------------------------------- Works by the U.S. Government are not subject to copyright protection. Whenever a work is published in copies or phonorecords consisting preponderantly of one or more works of the U.S. Government, the notice of copyright shall also include a statement that identifies one of the following: those portions protected by the copyright law OR those portions that constitute U.S. Government material. Unpublished Works ----------------- The copyright notice is not required on unpublished works. (See earlier post that defines the concept of "publishing.") To avoid an inadvertent publication without notice, however, it may be advisable for the author or other owner of the copyright to affix notices, or a statement such as UNPUBLISHED WORK (c) Copyright 1989, John Smith, to any copies or phonorecords which leave his or her control. Effect of Omission of the Notice or of Error in the Name or Date ---------------------------------------------------------------- Unlike the law in effect before 1978, the new Copyright Act, in sections 405 and 406, provides procedures for correcting errors and omissions of the copyright notice on works published on or after January 1, 1978. In general, the omission or error does not automatically invalidate the copyright in a work if registration for the work has been made before or is made within 5 years after the publication without notice, and a reasonable effort is made to add the notice to all copies or phonorecords that are distributed to the public in the U.S. after the omission or error has been discovered. Here's a post that, by necessity, I need to provide to you. As you will note, it is pertinent to the discussions pertaining to copyrights. As you may recall, several users have begun a brief discussion regarding whether or not government agencies and government entities may disregard the "unauthorized" duplication of copyrighted material. Well, the following may indicate that such a policy may be near its end. From: Rachel Parker, as appeared in the current issue of INFOWORLD -- Software lobbying groups are celebrating a new Supreme Court ruling that they believe lends support to their efforts to close a loophole in the Copyright Act. In PENNSYLVANIA vs. UNION GAS CO., the state of Pennsylvania argued that it could not be required to pay monetary damages for violating an environmental law because states are immune from such federal interference under the 11th AAmendment. In a closely divided ruling, the Court held that while the state was protected by the 11th Amendment, the state agency could be held liable for monetary damages if Congress had specifically named such organizations in laws. This issue is a familiar one to the PC software industry. In 1988, the University of California at Los Angeles defended itself in a computer software copyright action, saying that as a state agency it was immune from paying monetary damages. The court in that case, called BV ENGINEERING vs. U.C.L.A., said that while the school had illegally copied the software, BV Engineering could not collect any monetary damages from the school. Since that case was decided, the Software Publishers Association and Adapso have been working with legislators to amend the Copyright Act, making states and their agencies specifically liable for monetary damages in copyright infringement cases. "I suspect that now that UNION GAS has come downm we will get our law," said Mary Jane Saunders, general counsel for SPA. A proposed law has been drafted, and the two trade groups have been sponsoring testimony before Congress supporting the proposal. Part 7 - How Long Copyright Protection Endures ---------------------------------------------- Works Originally Copyrighted on or After January 1, 1978 -------------------------------------------------------- A work that is created (fixed in tangible form for the first time) on or after January 1, 1978, is automatically protected from the moment of its creation, and it is ordinarily given a term enduring for the author's life, plus an additional 50 years after the author's death. In the case of "a joint work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire," the term lasts for 50 years after the last surviving author's death. For works made for hire, and for anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author's identity is revealed in Copyright Office records), the duration of copyright will be 75 years from publication or 100 years from creation, whichever is shorter. Works that were created but not published or registered for copyright before January 1, 1978, have been automatically brought under the statute and are now given Federal copyright protection. The duration of copyright in these cases will generally be computed in the same way as for works created on or after January 1,1978. The law provides that in no case will the term of copyright for works in this category expire before December 31, 2002, and for works published on or before December 31, 2002, the term of copyright will not expire before December 31, 2027. Works Copyrighted Before January 1, 1978 ---------------------------------------- Under the law in effect before 1978, copyright was secured either on the date a work was published or on the date of registration if the work was registered in unpublished form. In either case, the copyright endured for a first term of 28 years from the date it was secured. During the last (28th) year of the first term, the copyright was eligible for renewal. The current copyright laws has extended the renewal term from 28 to 47 years for copyrights that were subsisting on January 1, 1978, making the works eligible for a total term of protection of 75 years. However, the copyright MUST be renewed to receive the 47-year period of added protection. This is accomplished by filing a properly completed Form RE accompanied by a $6 filing fee in the Copyright Office before the end of the 28th calendar year of the original term. Part 8 - Transfer of Copyright ------------------------------ Any or all of the exclusive rights, or any subdivision of those rights, of the copyright owner may be transferred, but the transfer of exclusive rights is not valid unless that transfer is in writing and signed by the owner of the rights conveyed (or such owner's duly authorized agent). Transfer of a right on a nonexclusive basis does not require a written agreement. A copyright may also be conveyed by operation of law and may be bequeathed by will or pass as personal property by the applicable laws of intestate succession. Copyright is a personal property right, and it is subject to the various state laws and regulations that govern the ownership, inheritance, or transfer of personal property as well as terms of contracts or conduct of business. For information about relevant state laws, you are advised to consult with an attorney within your state. Transfers of copyright are normally made by contract. The Copyright Office does not have or supply any forms for such transfers. However, the law does provide for the recordation in the Copyright Office of transfers of copyright ownership. Although recordation is not required to make a valid transfer between the parties, it does provide certain legal advantages and may be required to validate the transfer as against third parties. (See Circular 12) Termination of Transfers ------------------------ Under the previous law, the copyright in a work generally reverted to the author, if living, or if the author was not living, to other specified beneficiaries, provided a renewal claim was registered in the 28th year of the original term. The present law drops the renewal feature except for works already in the first term of statutory protection when the present law took effect. Instead, the present law generally permits termination of a grant of rights after 35 years under certain conditions by serving written notice on the transferee within specified time limits. For works already under statutory copyright protection before 1978, the present law provides a similar right of termination covering the newly added years that extended the former maximum term of the copyright from 56 to 75 years. (See Circulars 15a and 15t) Part 9 - International Copyright Protection ------------------------------------------- There is no such thing as an "international copyright" that will automatically protect an author's work throughout the entire world. Protection against unauthorized use in a particular country depends, basically, on the national laws of that country. However, most countries do offer protection to foreign works under certain conditions, and these conditions have been greatly simplified by international copyright treaties and conventions. (See Circular 38a) The United States is a member of the Universal Copyright Conven- tion (the UCC), which came into force on September 16, 1955. Generally, a work by a national or domiciliary of a country that is a member of the UCC or a work first published in a UCC country may claim protection under the UCC. If the work bears the notice of copyright in the form and position specified by the UCC, this notice will satisfy and substitute for any formalities a UCC member country would otherwise impose as a condition of copyright. A UCC notice should consist of the symbol (c) -- the letter "C" in a circle -- accompanied by the name of the copyright proprietor and the year of first publication of the work. (Note: to qualify, a work must be considered "published." Unpublished works do not generally qualify. See definition of "a published work" above.) An author who wishes protection for his or her work in a particular country should first find out the extent of protection of foreign works in that country. If possible, this should be done before the work is published anywhere, since protection may often depend on the facts existing at the time of FIRST publication. If the country in which protection is sought is a party to one of the international copyright conventions, the work may generally be protected by complying with the conditions of the convention. Even if the work cannot be brought under an international convention, protection under the specific provisions of the country's national laws may still be possible. Some countries, however, offer little or no copyright protection for foreign works. Copyrights - Part 10a -------------------- Copyright Registration ---------------------- In general, copyright registration is a legal formality intended to make a public record of the basic facts of a particular copyright. However, except in two specific situations, registration is not a condition of copyright protection. (The two specific situations are: Works published with notice of copyright prior to January 1, 1978, must be registered and renewed during the first 28-year term of copyright to maintain protection. Under section 405 and 406 of the Copyright Act, copyright registration may be required to preserve a copyright that would otherwise be invalidated because the copyright notice was omitted from the published copies or phonorecords, or the name or year date was omitted, or certain errors were made in the year date.) Even though registration is not generally a requirement for protection, the copyright law provides several inducements or advantages to encourage copyright owners to make registration. Among these advantages are the following: - Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim; - Registration is ordinarily necessary before any infringement suits may be filed in court; - If made before or within 5 years of publication, registration will establish prima facie evidence in court of the validity of the copyright and of the facts stated in the certificate; and - If registration is made within 3 months adfter publication of the work or prior to an infringement of the work, statutory damages and attorney's fees will be available to the copyright owner in court actions. Otherwise, only an award of actual damages and profits is available to the copyright owner. Registration may be made at any time within the life of the copyright. Unlike the law before 1978 (i.e., effective in 1978, while passed in 1976), when a work has been registered in unpublished form, it is not necessary to make another registration when the work becomes published (although the copyright owner msy choose to register the published edition, if desired). Registration Procedures ----------------------- In General: A. To register a work, send the following three elements IN THE SAME ENVELOPE OR PACKAGE to the Register of Copyrights, Copyright Office, Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20559: 1. A properly completed application form; 2. A nonrefundable filing fee of $10 for each application; 3. A nonreturnable deposit of the work being registered. The deposit requirements vary in particular situations. The GENERAL requirements follow. Also note that information under "Special Deposit Requirements" will follow this section (but in a different post). - If the work is unpublished, one complete copy or phono- record. - If the work was first published in the United States on or after January 1, 1978, two complete copies or phonorecords of the best edition. - If the work was first published in the United States before January 1, 1978, two complete copies or phonorecords of the work as first published. - If the work was first published outside the United States, whenever published, one complete copy or phonorecord of the work as first published. NOTE: Before 1978, the copyright law required, as a condition for copyright protection, that all copies published with the authorization of the copyright owner bear a proper notice. If a work was published under the copyright owner's authority before January 1, 1978, without a proper copyright notice, all copyright protection for that work was permanently lost in the United States. The current copyright law does not provide retroactive protection for those works. B. To register a renewal, send: 1. A properly completed RE application form, and 2. A nonrefundable filing fee of $6 for each work. Copyrights - Part 10b --------------------- Special Deposit Requirements ---------------------------- Special deposit requirements exist for many types of work. In some instances, only one copy is required for published works, in other instances only identifying material is required, and in still other instances, the deposit requirement may be unique. For example, in the case of a published motion picture, only one copy of the work is required, but is must be accompanied by a separate written description of the work. In the case of works reproduced in three-dimensional copies, identifying material such as photographs or drawings is ordinarily required. Other examples of special deposit requirements (but by no means an exhaustive list) include many works of the visual arts, such as greeting cards, toys, fabric, oversized material; video games and other machine-readable audiovisual works; and contribution to collective works. Unpublished Collections ----------------------- A work may be registered in unpublished form as a "collection," with one application and one fee, under the following conditions: - The elements of the collection are assembled in an orderly form; - The combined elements bear a single title identifying the collection as a whole; - The copyright claimant in all the elements and in the collection as a whole is the same; and - All of the elements are by the same author, or, if they are by different authors, at least one of the authors has contributed copyrightable authorship to each element. Unpublished collections are indexed in the Catalog of Copyright Entries opnly under the collection titles. If you are unsure of the proper deposit required for your work, write to te Copyright Office for that information and describe the work you wish to register. NOTE: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD NUMBERS: A Library of Congress Catalog Card Number is different from a copyright registration number. The Cataloging in Publication (CIP) Division of the Library of Congress is responsible for assigning LC Catalog Card Numbers and is operationally separate from the Copyright Office. A book may be registered in or deposited with the Copyright Office but not necessarily cataloged and added to the Library's collections. For information about obtaining an LC Catalog Card Number, contact the CIP Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540. For information on International Standard Book Numbering (ISBN), write to: ISBN Agency, R.R.Bowker Company, 205 East 42nd Street, New York, N.Y. 10017. For information on International Standard Serial Numbering (ISSN), write to: Library of Congress, National Serials Data Program, Washington, D.C. 20540. Copyrights - Part 11a --------------------- Corrections and Amplifications of Existing Registrations -------------------------------------------------------- To correct an error in a copyright registration or to amplify the ionformation given in a registration, file a supplementary registration form -- FORM CA -- with the Copyright Office. The information in a supplementary registration augments but does not supersede that contained in the earlier registration. Note also that a supplementary registration is not a substitute for an original registration, for a renewal registration, or for recording a transfer of ownership. For further information, write to the Copyright Office and request Circular 8. Mandatory Deposit for Works Published in the United States with Notice ---------------------------------------------------------------------- of Copyright ------------ Although a copyright registration is not required, the Copyright Act establishes a mandatory deposit requirement for works published with notice of copyright in the United States. In general, the owner of copyright, or the owner of the exclusive right of publication in the work, has a legal obligation to deposit in the Copyright Office, within three months of publication in the U.S., two copies (or, in the case of sound recordings, two phonorecords) for the use of the Library of Congress. Failure to make the deposit can result in fines and other penalties, but does not affect copyright protection. Certain categories of works are EXEMPT ENTIRELY from the mandatory deposit requirements, and the obligation is reduced for certain other categories. For further information, contact the Copyright Office and request Circular 7d. Use of Mandatory Deposit to Satisfy Registration Requirements ------------------------------------------------------------- For works published in the U.S. the Copyright Act contains a provision under which a single deposit can be made to sarisfy both the deposit requirements for the Library and the registration requirements. In order to have this dual effect, the copies or phonorecords must be accompanied by the prescribed application and fee for registration. Who May File an Application Form -------------------------------- The following persons are legally entitled to submit an application form: - The author. This is either the person who actually created the work, or, if the work was made for hire, the employer or other person for whom the work was prepared. - The copyright claimant. The copyright claimant is defined in the Copyright Office regulations as either the author of the work or a person or organization that has obtained ownership of all the rights under the copyright initially belonging to the author. This category includes a person or organization who has obtained by contract the right to claim legal title to the copyright in an application for copyright registration. - The owner of exclusive right(s). Under the new law, any of the exclusive rights that go to make up a copyright and any subdivision of them can be transferred and owned separately, even though the transfer may be limited in time or place of effect. The term "copyright owner" with respect to any one of the exclusive rights contained in a copyright refers to the owner of that particular right. Any owner of an exclusive right may apply for registration of a claim in the work. - The duly authorized agent of such author, other copyright claimant, or owner of exclusive right(s). Any person authorized to act on behalf of the author, other copyright claimant, or owner of exclusive right(s) may apply for registration. There is no requirement that applications be prepared or filed by an attorney. Copyrights - Part 12 -------------------- Application Forms ----------------- Though not part of our original outline, we have decided to provide you with the information regarding the specific application forms required for particular materials. 1. For Original Registration ---------------------------- Form TX: for published and unpublished non-dramatic literary works. Form SE: for serials, works issued or intended to be issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely (periodicals, newspapers, magazines, newsletters, annuals, journals, etc.) Form PA: for published and unpublished works of the performing arts (musical and dramatic works, pantomimes and choreographic works, motion pictures and other audiovisual works) Form VA: for published and unpublished works of the visual arts (pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works) Form SR: for published and unpublished sound recordings 2. For Renewal Registration --------------------------- Form RE: for claims to renewal copyright works copyrighted under the law in effect through December 31, 1977 (1909 Copyright Act) 3. For Corrections and Amplifications ------------------------------------- Form CA: for supplementary registration to correct or amplify informationm given in the Copyright Office record of an earlier registration. 4. For a Group of Contributions to Periodicals ---------------------------------------------- Form GR/CP: ad adjunct application to be used for registration of a group of contributions to peridicals in addition to an application Form TX, PA, or VA Applications are supplied by the Copyright Office. You may obtain free copies by calling (202) 707-9100. Mailing Instructions -------------------- All applications and materials related to copyright registration should be addressed to the Register of Copyrights, Copyright Office, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20559. The application, nonreturnable deposit (copies, phonorecords, or identifying material), and nonrefundable filing fee should be mailed in the same package. Fees must be in U.S. funds drawn on an American Bank. Effective Date of Registration ------------------------------ A copyright registration is effective on the date of receipt in the Copyright Office of all the required elements in accdeptable form, regardless of the length of time it takes thereafter to process the application and mail the certificate of registration. The length of time required by the Copyright Office to process an application varies from time to time. If you are filing an application for copyright registration in the Copyright Office, you will NOT receive an acknowledgement that your application has been received, but you can expect within 120 days: - A letter or telephone call from a copyright examiner if further information is needed; - A certificate of registration to indicate the work has been registered, or if the application cannot be accepted, a letter explaining why it has been rejected. If you want to know when the Copyright Office receives your material, you should send it by registered or certified mail and request a return receipt from the post office. Allow at least three weeks for the return of your receipt. ======================================================================= This completes our discussion of copyrights in general. In our next post in the near future, we'll provide you with information on Circular 61 - Copyright Registration for Computer Programs, and on Circular 93 - Highlights of the U.S. Adherence to the Berne Convention.