Copyright

Copyright is a form of legal protection provided to the creators of "original works of authorship," both published and unpublished.

In the US, copyright protection is governed by Title 17 of the US Code and applies to literary works, visual art, dance, musical compositions, radio and television broadcasts, software, and other types of intellectual property. Copyright Requirements

1. Work must be eligible for copyright protection
2. Work must be original
3. Work must be "fixed" - i.e. written down, or recorded
4. There is no filing requirement
5. Since 1978 in the US: no need to place a copyright notice on the work
6. Copyright automatically created when an original work is generated (proving authorship however, is different)
7. Post 1978: Works protected for the author's life, plus 70 years

Protection/rights

1. Copyright protection gives the author a number of exclusive rights to the work:

• • To produce copies
  • To sell copies
  • To import or export the work
  • To create derivative works, by adapting the original work
  • To perform, transmit, or display the work
  • To sell or assign these rights

Exceptions

1. "Fair Use Doctrine" - the ability to quote short passages of a work for non-commercial use
2. Actual Fair Use wording in the statute is not very specific
3. Fair use factors:

• • Purpose, character of the use
  • Nature of the copyrighted work
  • Amount and percentage of the work that was used
  • Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the work

Fast Facts:

1. Most works before 1923 are considered public domain
2. Most countries have copyright periods lasting between 50-100 years
3. First International copyright treaty was the Berne Convention in 1886

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