COPYRIGHT ESSENTIALS Module 1

Module One Overview  This module will teach you what copyright is and what is protected by copyright.  Questions this module should answer  Why study copyright?  Why be concerned with copyright?  Why does copyright--law, policy, guidelines, rules, etc. exist in the first place?  Where did copyright law come from?

Objectives  You will learn more about “why” copyright law exists and where it all started (history of copyright).  Understand when permission should be requested for use of works protected by copyright.  Video Link Video Link  Video retrieved from:  Copyright Basics Copyright Basics  Document from The U.S. copyright office

What is copyright?  Copyright is protection provided by law (title 17, U.S. Code) to the authors/creators of “original works of authorship,” expressed in any tangible medium. This protection is available for original works from the moment they are created and expressed in a tangible medium, and it applies whether they are published, unpublished, or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.  Copyright ownership and protection is available for an author/creator if three requirements are met:  Fixation—the work exists in a medium from which the author’s expression can be read, seen, or heard, either directly or by the aid of a machine;  Originality—the work owes its origin and independent creation to an author;  Minimal creativity—the work is the product of at least a minimal level of creativity  The US Copyright Law itself is a federal law and is codified in U.S. code Title 17. Click here to read the law.

What is protected?  Most original works expressed in a tangible medium are protected by copyright law. The U.S. Copyright law places copyrightable works in the following categories:The U.S. Copyright law  Literary works  Musical works, including any accompanying words  Dramatic works, including any accompanying music  Pantomimes and choreographic works  Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works  Motion pictures and other audiovisual works  Sound recordings  Architectural works  You should view these categories broadly. For example, computer programs and most compilations may be categorized and registered as literary works; maps and architectural plans may be categorized and registered as pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works.

What is not protected?  According to the U.S. Copyright Office, this is a shorter list includes only:U.S. Copyright Office,  works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression.  titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents.  ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices -- as distinguished from a description, an explanation, or an illustration.  works consisting entirely of information that is common property and contains no original authorship, such as standard calendars, height and weight charts, tape measures and rulers

Public Domain  Contrary to popular belief, the public domain is not a place.  The public domain is a work of authorship is in the “public domain” if it is no longer under copyright protection or if it failed to meet the requirements for copyright protection. Works in the public domain may be used freely without the permission of the former copyright owner.  The only other tangible works that are not afforded copyright protection are works in the public domain. Even that body of work is nowhere near as extensive as is commonly believed. In the United States, for example, the public domain includes:  works published before January 1,  works published between 1923 and 1978 that did not contain a valid copyright notice.  works published between 1923 and 1978 for which the copyright was not renewed.  works authored by employees of the federal government.  works that the copyright owner has freely granted to the public domain.  Because of the duration of copyright protection established in the 1976 revision of the U.S. Copyright Act, no works published after January 1, 1978, will pass into the public domain until at least Even anonymous works are copyright protected until 95 years after publication!

Taking the Mystery Out of Copyright  From the Library of Congress Website   Video Link Video Link