Module 4 - How to Obtain and Protect Your IPRs in the United States
Lesson 2: Copyright
Reading time ~6 minutes
As you learned in the previous lesson, copyright protection in the United States does not depend upon registration or any other official procedures or formalities. Rather, a creative work is considered protected by copyright as soon as it is created, provided that it is:
- Original
- Fixed in a tangible form
Copyright registration does, however, afford significant benefits to copyright owners, and it is necessary before an owner of a work of U.S. origin can bring a copyright infringement lawsuit in a U.S. court. On the next several screens, you will learn about the benefits of copyright registration and the procedures for securing a registration.
There are numerous benefits to securing a copyright registration in the United States. A copyright registration:
- Establishes a public record of ownership of the copyright.
- Creates a legal presumption of ownership of the copyright.
- Is necessary for a U.S. rights holder to bring a lawsuit for copyright infringement of U.S. works in U.S. Federal courts.
- Strengthens a copyright owner’s position in a copyright infringement court case.
- Is necessary to record the copyright with U.S. Customs to prevent infringing imports from entering the country.
- Allows the copyright owner to claim statutory damages and attorney’s fees in a copyright infringement suit. (Otherwise, the owner must prove actual damages and pay his or her own attorney’s fees.)
Copyright registration is available for unpublished as well as published works.
Copyright Deposit
The nature of the deposit required to register a copyright depends upon the nature of the work to be registered and is set forth in the detailed instructions with the form for that work. For example:
- For two-dimensional works (e.g., a cartoon or greeting card), a copy of the work is required.
- For three-dimensional works (e.g., a sculpture or toy), identifying material" is required, such as photographs, drawings, or other two-dimensional reproductions of the work.
For more information about copyright deposit requirements in the United States, go to http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ40a.html#three.
Copyright registration in the United States is relatively straightforward. To register a copyright, the owner must:
- Complete the appropriate application form for the specific type of work
- Forms are available at www.copyright.gov/register
- Detailed instructions are included with each form
- For help with completing applications, go to www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1c.pdf
- Send the application to: Library of Congress, Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue, S.E., Washington, DC 20559-6000, together with a:
- $45 filing fee
- Non-returnable copy (or copies) of the material to be registered (the deposit) as specified in the detailed instructions for that form
For more information on copyright registration, visit www.copyright.gov/help/faq/.
Publication of Copyrighted Work
"Publication" has a technical meaning in copyright law. Generally, publication occurs on the date on which copies of the work are first made available to the public. Publication is important because:-
Works that are published in the United States are subject to mandatory deposit with the Library of Congress
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Publication of a work can affect the limitations on the exclusive rights of the copyright owner
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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
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Deposit requirements for registration of published works differ from those for registration of unpublished works
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When a work is published, it may bear a notice of copyright to identify the year of publication and the name of the copyright owner and to inform the public that the work is protected by copyright
Innocent Infringement
In a copyright infringement case, infringers often raise the defense of "innocent infringement"--that is, that he or she did not realize that his or her acts constituted infringement of copyright. An innocent infringement defense may result in a reduction in damages that the copyright owner would otherwise receive. If a work has a proper copyright notice, however, the court will not give any weight to a defendant’s innocent infringement defense.
Proper Use of Copyright Notice
A copyright notice should contain three elements:
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The symbol © (the letter C in a circle) or the word “Copyright”
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The year of first publication
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The name of the copyright owner of the work
Example for published works: © 2007 Jane Doe
Example for unpublished works: Unpublished work © 2007 Jane Doe
Use of a copyright notice on copies of the unpublished work that leave the owner's control may be useful in deterring infringement. Similarly, unpublished works may be registered with the Copyright Office.
Some people like to add contact information to their copyright notice so that interested parties know how to contact them to obtain permission to use their works. A statement regarding the owner's copyright rights is also included sometimes, either as a reminder or cautionary note or to spell out the owner's licensing of his or her rights (e.g., "All rights reserved").
In addition to securing a copyright registration, another step that U.S. copyright owners take to protect their work is affixing a copyright notice to their work, even when their work is not published. Like copyright registration, use of the copyright notice is not required, but it does afford the copyright owner certain benefits such as:
- Informing the public that the work is protected by copyright, thus deterring infringement
- Informing the public of the name of the copyright owner and the year of first publication of the work
- Eliminating the potential for use of the "innocent infringement" defense in court
It is important to note that copyright registration is not required to use the copyright notice.
Click here to see examples of copyright notices.
Copyright Ownership
As you learned in the previous lesson, at least in the United States, you do not own the copyright in material created by an independent contractor unless you have a written agreement stating that the work is a work made for hire or, if it is not a work made for hire, transferring the copyright to you. Therefore, if you hire a Web site developer to create your Web site for you, you need to have a proper website development agreement in place to ensure that you will own all IPRs in the Web site. More information regarding Web site development agreements can be found through several free resources on the Web, one of which is http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/business_website.htm.
Most businesses today have a Web site for the purpose of transacting business through the Internet and/or to provide information to potential consumers. Whether your Web site supports e-commerce or is simply informational, there are IPRs that are important to protect. As the value and reputation of your business grows, so does the risk that others may steal the content, graphics or general "look and feel" of your Web site. Most elements of a Web site are protected by copyright law, for example:
- Text
- Graphics
- Photographs
- Code
- Compilations of data
- Video and audio recordings
- Arrangement and selection of any of the above
If you have taken proper steps to ensure ownership of the copyright in these elements of your Web site, they can be protected through the means discussed in this course for protecting other creative works, such as copyright registration and use of a copyright notice. In addition to stealing copyrighted works, others may steal the trademarks for registration and use in their own country or for domain names. For these reasons, most Web site owners maintain links on their Web sites to detailed information about their intellectual property (IP) and about any third-party IP that they may have licensed for use.
More information on protecting IPRs in your Web site is available through many free resources available on the web, one of which is http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/business_website.htm.
You have now completed the lesson on protecting a copyright in the United States.
- If you wish to learn about protecting your copyrights abroad, select Module 5 from the menu on the top left of this screen.
- If you would like to read about protecting trademarks, patents, and trade secrets in the United States, continue with this module.