High-Tech Productions wants to
make sure your copyrights are protected.
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Software & Video
Piracy
is a Federal Offense.
We will neither accept
nor perform any illegal duplication or transfers.
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Any piece of software, audio/video material or song that you
write is your property, but sometimes that can be impossible to prove in court. We
strongly advise that you copyright your original material. Once it is copyrighted, no one
will be able to legally copy or re-record the material without your written permission.
To establish a copyright,
you will need to complete the following steps:
Download, complete, and
submit the registration forms to the U.S. Copyright Office/Library of Congress
Include a copy of the
material you want to copyright.
Include your filing fee
payment.
(Please check their web site or call (202) 707-3000 for fee information.)
In 2 - 3 weeks, you will receive written confirmation that your property has been
copyrighted. Now you can become affiliated with a licensing company that will track the
usage of your material, and will assist you in collecting royalty payments.
To begin the
process and
register your material with the
Library of Congress, Click Here. |
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You
can also register your copyright online by Clicking Here
Anti-Piracy
Compliance Program
for the Manufacture of Optical Media
The International Recording Media
Association's (IRMA) Anti-Piracy Compliance Program is an organization which protects
copyright owners from unauthorized reproduction of their property. IRMA maintains an Anti-Piracy Certification and Compliance Program
for the manufacture of CDs, DVDs and CD-ROMs. This initiative is designed to help
manufacturing, duplication and replication facilities establish procedures to reduce the
distribution of pirated material.
IRMA, has gathered widespread
industry support for its anti-piracy program. It was developed with input and
support from optical media replicators, the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the Business Software Alliance
(BSA), the Software Information Industry Association (SIIA), the Interactive Digital
Software Association (IDSA) and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry
(IFPI).
For more
information, visit the IRMA web
site & our Info Center
Here are some Copyright Basic's
High-Tech Productions provides
this document as a guide only.
Copyright is a form of
protection provided by the laws of the United States to the authors of "original
works of authorship". The Copyright Act generally gives the owner the exclusive right
to do and to authorize others to do the following:
To reproduce the copyrighted
work in copies or phonorecords;
To prepare derivative works
based upon the copyrighted work;
To distribute copies or
phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership,
or by rental, lease, or lending;
To perform the copyrighted
work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works,
pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works;
To display the copyrighted
work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works,
pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images
of a motion picture or other audiovisual work.
It is illegal for anyone to
violate any of the rights provided by the Act to the owner of 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 expressly 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 protection is
available for all unpublished works, regardless of the nationality or domicile of the
author. Published works are eligible for copyright protection in the United States if any
one of the following conditions is met:
1) On the date of first
publication, one or more of the authors is a national or domiciliary of the United States
or is a national, domiciliary, or sovereign authority of a foreign nation that is a party
to a copyright treaty to which the United States is also a party, or is a stateless person
wherever that person may be domiciled; or
2) The work is first published
in the United States or in a foreign nation that, on the date of first publication, is a
party to the Universal Copyright Convention; or the work comes within the scope of a
Presidential proclamation; or
3) The work is first published
on or after March 1, 1989, in a foreign nation that on the date of first publication, is a
party to the Berne Convention; or, if the work is not first published in a country party
to the Berne Convention, it is published (on or after March 1,1989) within 30 days of
first publication in a country that is party to the Berne Convention; or the work, first
published on or after March 1, 1989, is a pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work that is
incorporated in a permanent structure located in the United States; or, if the work, first
published on or after March 1, 1989, is a published audiovisual work, all the authors are
legal entities with headquarters in the United States.
Copyright protects
"original works of authorship" that are fixed in a tangible form of expression.
The fixation need not 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;
(7) sound recordings; and
(8) architectural works.
These categories should be
viewed quite broadly: for example, computer programs and most "compilations" are
registerable as "literary works;" maps and architectural plans are registerable
as "pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works."
Several categories of material
are generally not eligible for statutory copyright protection. These include among others:
1) Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression. For example:
choreographic works that have not been notated or recorded, or improvisational speeches or
performances that have not been written or recorded.
2) Titles, names, short
phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic
ornamentation, lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents.
3) Ideas, procedures, methods,
systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a
description, explanation, or illustration.
4) 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 rulers, and lists or
tables taken from public documents or other common sources.
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 (see following NOTE). There are, however, certain definite advantages to
registration.
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.
Statutory copyright could also
be secured before 1978 by the act of registration in the case of certain unpublished works
and works eligible for ad interim copyright. The current Act automatically extends to full
term (section 304 sets the term) copyright for all works including those subject to ad
interim copyright if ad interim registration has been made on or before June 30, 1978.
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. "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.
"Phonorecords" are material objects embodying fixations of sounds (excluding, by
statutory definition, motion picture soundtracks), such as cassette tapes, CD's, or LP's.
Thus, for example, a song (the "work") can be fixed in sheet music
("copies") or in phonograph disks ("phonorecords"), or both.
If a work is prepared over a
period of time, the part of the work that is fixed on a particular date constitutes the
created work as of that date.
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 of itself constitute publication.
Publication is an important
concept in the copyright law for several reasons:
1) 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. Works
published before March 1, 1989, must bear the notice or risk loss of copyright protection.
(See discussion "notice of copyright" below.)
2) Works that are published in
the United States are subject to mandatory deposit with the Library of Congress. (See
discussion on "mandatory deposit," below.)
3) Publication of a work can
affect the limitations on the exclusive rights of the copyright owner that are set forth
in sections 107 through 120 of the law.
4) 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.
5) Deposit requirements for
registration of published works differ from those for registration of unpublished works.
For works first published on
and after March 1, 1989, use of the copyright notice is optional, though highly
recommended. Before March 1, 1989, the use of the notice was mandatory on all published
works, and any work first published before that date must bear a notice or risk loss of
copyright protection.
(The Copyright Office does not
take a position on whether works first published with notice before March 1, 1989, and
reprinted and distributed on and after March 1, 1989, must bear the copyright notice.)
Use of the notice is
recommended because it informs the public that the work is protected by copyright,
identifies the copyright owner, and shows the year of first publication. Furthermore, in
the event that a work is infringed, if the work carries a proper notice, the court will
not allow a defendant to claim "innocent infringement" --that is, that he or she
did not realize that the work is protected. (A successful innocent infringement claim may
result in a reduction in damages that the copyright owner would otherwise receive.)
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 copyright symbol (the
letter "C" in a circle), or the word "Copyright," or the abbreviation
"Copr."; and
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 compilation or
derivative 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 article; and
3. The name of the owner of
copyright in the work, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized, or a
generally known alternative designation of the owner.
The "C in a circle"
notice is used only on "visually perceptible copies." Certain kinds of works for
example, musical, dramatic, and literary works may be fixed not in "copies" but
by means of sound in an audio recording. Since audio recordings such as audio tapes and
phonograph disks are "phonorecords" and not "copies," the "C in a
circle" notice is not used to indicate protection of the underlying musical,
dramatic, or literary work that is recorded.
Form of Notice for
Phonorecords of Sound Recordings
The copyright notice for phonorecords of sound recordings* has somewhat different
requirements. The notice appearing on phonorecords should contain the following three
elements:
*Sound recordings are defined
as "works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other
sounds, but not including the sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual
work, regardless of the nature of the material objects, such as disks, tapes, or other
phonorecords, in which they are embodied.
1. The sound recording
copyright symbol (the letter "P" in a circle); and
2. The year of first
publication of the sound recording; and
3. The name of the owner of
copyright in the sound recording, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized,
or a generally known alternative designation of the owner. If the producer of the sound
recording is named on the phonorecord labels or containers, and if no other name appears
in conjunction with the notice, the producer's name shall be considered a part of the
notice.
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." The notice on phonorecords may appear
on the surface of the phonorecord or on the phonorecord label or container, provided the
manner of placement and location give reasonable notice of the claim. 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 CFR Part 201). For more information, request
Circular 3.
Publications Incorporating United States
Government Works
Works by the U.S. Government
are not eligible for copyright protection. For works published on and after March 1, 1989,
the previous notice requirement for works consisting primarily of one or more U.S.
Government works has been eliminated. However, use of the copyright notice for these works
is still strongly recommended. Use of a notice on such a work will defeat a claim of
innocent infringement as previously described provided the notice also includes a
statement that identifies one of the following: those portions of the work in which
copyright is claimed or those portions that constitute U.S. Government material. An
example is:
Unpublished Works
To avoid an inadvertent
publication without notice, the author or other owner of copyright may wish to place a
copyright notice on any copies or phonorecords that leave his or her control. An
appropriate notice for an unpublished work is: Unpublished work Copyright 1994 Jane Doe.
Effect of Omission of the Notice or of
Error in the Name or Date
The Copyright Act, in sections
405 and 406, provides procedures for correcting errors and omissions of the copyright
notice on works published on or after January 1, 1978, and before March 1, 1989.
In general, if a notice was
omitted or an error was made on copies distributed on or after January 1, 1978, and before
March 1, 1989, the copyright was not automatically lost. Copyright protection may be
maintained if registration for the work has been made before or is made within 5 years
after the publication without notice, and a reasonable effort is made to add the notice to
all copies or phonorecords that are distributed to the public in the United States after
the omission has been discovered. For more information request Circular 3.
Works Originally Created On or After
January 1, 1978
A work that is created (fixed
in tangible form for the first time) on or after January 1, 1978, is automatically
protected from the moment of its creation, and is ordinarily given a term enduring for the
author's life, plus an additional 50 years after the author's death. In the case of
"a joint work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire," the
term lasts for 50 years after the last surviving author's death. For works made for hire,
and for anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author's identity is revealed in
Copyright Office records), the duration of copyright will be 75 years from publication or
100 years from creation, whichever is shorter.
Works Originally Created Before January 1,
1978,
But Not Published or Registered by That Date
Works that were created but
not published or registered for copyright before January 1, 1978, have been automatically
brought under the statute and are now given Federal copyright protection. The duration of
copyright in these works will generally be computed in the same way as for works created
on or after January 1, 1978: the life-plus-50 or 75/100-year terms will apply to them as
well. The law provides that in no case will the term of copyright for works in this
category expire before December 31, 2002, and for works published on or before December
31, 2002, the term of copyright will not expire before December 31, 2027.
Works Originally Created and Published or
Registered Before January 1, 1978
Under the law in effect before
1978, copyright was secured either on the date a work was published or on the date of
registration if the work was registered in unpublished form. In either case, the copyright
endured for a first term of 28 years from the date it was secured. During the last (28th)
year of the first term, the copyright was eligible for renewal. The current copyright law
has extended the renewal term from 28 to 47 years for copyrights that were subsisting on
January 1, 1978, making these works eligible for a total term of protection of 75 years.
Public Law 102-307, enacted on
June 26, 1992, amended the Copyright Act of 1976 to extend automatically the term of
copyrights secured from January 1, 1964, through December 31, 1977 to the further term of
47 years and increased the filing fee from $12 to $20. This fee increase applies to all
renewal applications filed on or after June 29, 1992.
P.L. 102-307 makes renewal
registration optional. There is no need to make the renewal filing in order to extend the
original 28-year copyright term to the full 75 years. However, some benefits accrue to
making a renewal registration during the 28th year of the original term.
For more detailed information
on the copyright term, write to the Copyright Office and request Circulars 15, 15a, and
15t. For information on how to search the Copyright Office records concerning the
copyright status of a work, request Circular 22.
Any or all of the exclusive
rights, or any subdivision of those rights, of the copyright owner may be transferred, but
the transfer of exclusive rights is not valid unless that transfer is in writing and
signed by the owner of the rights conveyed (or such owner's duly authorized agent).
Transfer of a right on a nonexclusive basis does not require a written agreement.
A copyright may also be
conveyed by operation of law and may be bequeathed by will or pass as personal property by
the applicable laws of interstate succession.
Copyright is a personal
property right, and it is subject to the various state laws and regulations that govern
the ownership, inheritance, or transfer of personal property as well as terms of contracts
or conduct of business. For information about relevant state laws, consult an attorney.
Transfers of copyright are
normally made by contract. The Copyright Office does not have or supply any forms for such
transfers. However, the law does provide for the recordation in the Copyright Office of
transfers of copyright ownership. Although recordation is not required to make a valid
transfer between the parties, it does provide certain legal advantages and may be required
to validate the transfer as against third parties. For information on recordation of
transfers and other documents related to copyright, request Circular 12.
Termination of Transfers
Under the previous law, the
copyright in a work reverted to the author, if living, or if the author was not living, to
other specified beneficiaries, provided a renewal claim was registered in the 28th year of
the original term. [The copyright in works eligible for renewal on or after June 26, 1992,
will vest in the name of the renewal claimant on the effective date of any renewal
registration made during the 28th year of the original term. Otherwise, the renewal
copyright will vest in the party entitled to claim renewal as of December 31st of the 28th
year.] The present law drops the renewal feature except for works already in the first
term of statutory protection when the present law took effect. Instead, the present law
permits termination of a grant of rights after 35 years under certain conditions by
serving written notice on the transferee within specified time limits.
For works already under
statutory copyright protection before 1978, the present law provides a similar right of
termination covering the newly added years that extended the former maximum term of the
copyright from 56 to 75 years. For further information, request Circulars 15a and 15t.
There is no such thing as an
"international copyright" that will automatically protect an author's writings
throughout the entire world. Protection against unauthorized use in a particular country
depends, basically, on the national laws of that country. However, most countries do offer
protection to foreign works under certain conditions, and these conditions have been
greatly simplified by international copyright treaties and conventions. For a list of
countries which maintain copyright relations with the United States, request Circular 38a.
The United States belongs to
both global, multilateral copyright treaties the Universal Copyright Convention (UCC) and
the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. The United States
was a founding member of the UCC, which came into force on September 16, 1955. Generally,
a work by a national or domiciliary of a country that is a member of the UCC or a work
first published in a UCC country may claim protection under the UCC. If the work bears the
notice of copyright in the form and position specified by the UCC, this notice will
satisfy and&127 substitute for any other formalities a UCC member country would
otherwise impose as a condition of copyright. A UCC notice should consist of the symbol
accompanied by the name of the copyright proprietor and the year of first publication of
the work.
By joining the Berne
Convention on March 1, 1989, the United States gained protection for its authors in all
member nations of the Berne Union with which the United States formerly had either no
copyright relations or had bilateral treaty arrangements. Members of the Berne Union agree
to a certain minimum level of copyright protection and agree to treat nationals of other
member countries like their own nationals for purposes of copyright. A work first
published in the United States or another Berne Union country (or first published in a
non-Berne country, followed by publication within 30 days in a Berne Union country) is
eligible for protection in all Berne member countries. There are no special requirements.
For information on the legislation implementing the Berne Convention, request Circular 93
from the Copyright Office.
An author who wishes
protection for his or her work in a particular country should first find out the extent of
protection of foreign works in that country. If possible, this should be done before the
work is published anywhere, since protection may often depend on the facts existing at the
time of first publication.
If the country in which
protection is sought is a party to one of the international copyright conventions, the
work may generally be protected by complying with the conditions of the convention. Even
if the work cannot be brought under an international convention, protection under the
specific provisions of the country's national laws may still be possible. Some countries,
however, offer little or no copyright protection for foreign works.
For more information, visit:
U.S. Copyright
Office/Library of Congress
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k at our