Copyright Ownership and Protections
- holder of a copyright has the exclusive right to do anything with the copyrighted work
- only one who can reproduce, perform, or sell the work
- have the power to keep others from using their copyrighted material
- Copyright protection arises as soon as an original work is created in a fixed form
- author does not have to do anything to gain protection
- do not have to mark their work to get copyright protection
- Copyright owners have the power to allow others to use their copyrighted material
- by using a special kind of contract called a license
Rights of Copyright Owners
- reproduce the copyrighted work
- prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work
- distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public
- publicly perform the copyrighted work
- publicly display the copyrighted work
Types of Copyright Owners
- original creator
- work made for hire (WFH)
- E.g., when an employee creates work for his or her employer, the employer typically is the owner of the copyright
- WFH must be reflected in a written document
- shows that a person has specifically commissioned a WFH
- reflects that the author agrees to work on a WFH and that copyright belongs to the person who commissioned the work
- common works for hire:
- contribution to a collective work
- part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work
- translation
- supplementary work
- compilation
- instructional text
- test and answer material for a test
- atlas
Length of Copyright Protection
- length of copyright protection is determined through ownership
- Original creator:
- works created after January 1, 1978:
- copyright lasts for the length of the author’s life plus 70 years after the author’s death
- If two or more authors prepare a work:
- 70-year period does not begin to run out until after the last author’s death
- WFH:
- copyright lasts for 95 years from the publication of the work
- in some cases
- protection also could extend for 120 years from the creation of the work