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From: tim@ism780c.UUCP (Tim Smith)
Newsgroups: net.news
Subject: Re: public domain and copyright in netnews
Message-ID: <330@ism780c.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 27-Jan-86 20:46:59 EST
Article-I.D.: ism780c.330
Posted: Mon Jan 27 20:46:59 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Jan-86 04:37:46 EST
References: <3273@glacier.ARPA> <147@ubc-cs.UUCP> <3424@glacier.ARPA> <841@rtech.UUCP>
Reply-To: tim@ism780c.UUCP (Tim Smith)
Organization: Interactive Systems Corp., Santa Monica, CA
Lines: 28

In article <841@rtech.UUCP> jeff@rtech.UUCP (Jeff Lichtman) writes:
>> 
>> It is absolutely false that material posted to USENET is automatically in
>> the public domain. Perhaps in Canada (where ubc-cs is) that is true, but in
>> the United States all published material is automatically the copyright of
>> the author whether or not it has the "Copyright (C) 1986 XXXX" mark on it.
>
>According to William S. Strong in "The Copyright Book" (MIT Press), an author
>forfeits copyright if he or she publishes it without affixing a copyright
>notice.  Before 1978, a work was protected under common law if it was not
>published or registered with the Copyright Office.  The 1978 law protects
>most unpublished works under federal law.  Strong is a copyright lawyer, so
>I think he knows what he's talking about.
>-- 
>Jeff Lichtman at rtech (Relational Technology, Inc.)
>"Saints should always be judged guilty until they are proved innocent..."

I looked up copyright in the Encyclopedia of American Law ( I think that
was the title ), and what Mr. Lichtman says is correct.  You _can_ avoid
losing the copyright if you publish without a notice if it is only
a "relatively small" number of copies published, if you have registered
or register the work with the copyright office, or if someone who has
an agreement with you not to publish your work violates that agreement.

I don't think these exceptions would apply to most Usenet postings,
thus, Usenet stuff is public domain unless it has a copyright notice.
-- 
Tim Smith       sdcrdcf!ism780c!tim || ima!ism780!tim || ihnp4!cithep!tim