Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 beta 3/9/83; site nmtvax.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!houxm!hogpc!houti!ariel!vax135!floyd!cmcl2!lanl-a!unm-cvax!nmtvax!hennessy From: hennessy@nmtvax.UUCP Newsgroups: net.legal Subject: copyright Message-ID: <237@nmtvax.UUCP> Date: Sat, 21-Apr-84 01:13:04 EST Article-I.D.: nmtvax.237 Posted: Sat Apr 21 01:13:04 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 17-Apr-84 07:12:54 EST Organization: New Mexico Tech, Socorro, N.M. Lines: 253 The following is a reply to a message sent out on net.legal. /***** net.legal / nmtvax!hennessy / 6:49 pm Apr 1, 1984*/ What do I have to do if I wish to copyright something. For a few years I have taken to putting a "(c) copyright 198X by Greg Hennessy all rights reserved" on anything that seemed like I might use for more than ten minutes. The reasons were half comical but there were some (potentially) serious considerations for my actions. The local managers have given me three differing opinions on who owns the copyrights and other some stuff. Is what I do sufficient? If not what more do I have to do? Do I HAVE to pay a fee to legally copyright something? Sincerely; Greg Hennessy. /* ---------- */ You don't have to do anything at all, unless you publish it. I quote at length from Circular R1, available from the Information and Publications Section, LM-455, Copyright Office, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20559 (without permission, of course, but it's not illegal): ------------------------------------------ WHO CAN CLAIM COPYRIGHT Copyright protection subsists from the time the work is created in fixed form; that is, it is an 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 statute 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 a 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 agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work shall 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. [sections relating to minors, national origin of work omitted] WHAT WORKS ARE PROTECTED Copyright protection exists for "original works of authorship" when they become fixed in a tangible form of expression. The fixation does not need to 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. This list is illustrative and is not meant to exhaust the categories of copyrightable works. These categories should be viewed quite broadly so that, for example, computer programs and most "compilations" are registrable as "literary works"; maps and architectural blueprints are registrable as "pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works." WHAT IS NOT PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT Several categories of material are generally not eligible for statutory copyright protection. These include among others: o Works that have *not* been fixed in a tangible form of expression. For example: choreographic works which have not been notated or recorded, or improvisational speeches or performances that have not been written or recorded. o Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents. o Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a description, explanation, or illustration. o 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 rules, and list or tables taken from public documents or other common sources. HOW TO SECURE A COPYRIGHT Copyright Secured Automatically Upon Creation 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 under the present law, unlike the previous law, which required either publication with the copyright notice or registration in the Copyright Office (see NOTE below). There are, however, certain definite advantages to registration. (See COPYRIGHT REGISTRATION below.) Under the present law, 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. [Definition of "phonorecords" omitted.] If a work is prepared over a period of time, the part of the work existing in fixed form 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. | | ... | +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ 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 ownership, 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 performance or display of a work does not itself constitute publication. ...The [legislative] 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 [Usenet traffic?], is *not* a publication no matter how many people are exposed to the work. However, when copies or phonorecords are offered for sale or lease to a group of wholesalers, broadcasters, or motion picture theaters, publication does take place if the purpose is further distribution, public performance, or public display. Publication is an important concept in the copyright law because upon publication, several significant consequences follow. Among these are: o When a work is published, all published copies should bear a notice of copyright. (See discussion below of "notice of copyright.") o Works that are published with notice of copyright in the United States are subject to mandatory deposit with the Library of Congress. o Publication of a work can affect the limitations on the exclusive rights of the copyright owner that are set forth in sections 107-118 of the law. o The year of publication is used in determining 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. o Deposit requirements for registration or published works differ from those of unpublished works. 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 or 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. 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," or the abbreviation "Copr." 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 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 articles. 3. The name of the owner of the copyright in the work, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized, or a generally known alternative designation of the owner. Example: (c) 1982 John Doe [creative, aren't they?] ["Form of Notice for Phonorecords of Sound Recordings" omitted.] 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." [placement on phonorecords omitted] The three elements of the notice should ordinarily appear together on the copies or phonorecords. The Copyright Office has issued regulations concerning the form and position of the copyright notice in the \Code of Federal Regulations/ (37 C.F.R. Part 201); copies of these regulations are available from the Copyright Office as Circular R96 201.20. Publications Incorporating United States Government Works Whenever a work is published in copies or phonorecords consisting preponderantly of one or more works of the United States Government, the notice of copyright shall also include a statement identifying, either affirmatively or negatively, those portions of the copies or phonorecords embodying any work or works protected by title 17 of the United States Code. Unpublished Works The copyright notice is not required on unpublished works. To avoid an inadvertent publication without notice, however, it may be advisable to affix notices, or a statement such as Unpublished Work (c) 1982 John Doe, to any copies or phonorecords which leave his or her control. [several sections omitted] 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 conditions (errors in copyright notice or works published with the copyright notice before 1978), registration is not a condition of copyright protection. 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. Registration may be made at any time within the life of the copyright. Unlike the law before 1978, 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 may register the published edition, if desired). ------------------------------------ Whew! I hope this clears some of the haze. Although the information contained in this article has been checked for mechanical accuracy against the original, I disclaim any liability incurred from its use by anyone except myself. Dave Decot ucbvax!hpda!hpdsd!decot stansfer