A good place to start is right here.
You may want to be sure of what copyright really achieves.
Then, you will need to determine if you have the right to
claim copyright. Our guide can help you with making this determination
if needed.
There are at least eight different categories to choose
from to determine if your work(s) may be protected. Copyrightable
works include the following categories:
- 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
The way in which copyright protection is secured is frequently
misunderstood. Copyright registration is a legal formality;
however, copyright protection subsists from the time the work
is created in fixed form.
Publication is no longer the key to obtaining federal copyright
as it was under the Copyright Act of 1909. Our guide will
help you understand what you need to do in order to claim
copyright and then register your copyrighted work.
To start the actual process you will need to fill out the
appropriate application, send in a filing fee as well as a
deposit. The fees are quite reasonable; however, all monies
are non-refundable.
Here are Two General Principles
Mere ownership of a book, manuscript, painting, or any other
copy or audio records does not give the possessor the copyright.
The law provides that transfer of ownership of any material
object that embodies a protected work does not of itself convey
any rights in the copyright.
Minors may claim copyright, but state laws may regulate the
business dealings involving copyrights owned by minors. For
information on relevant state laws consult an attorney.
COPYRIGHT AND NATIONAL ORIGIN
OF THE WORK
Copyright protection is available for all unpublished works,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:
- 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 treaty
party,* or is a stateless person wherever that person may
be domiciled; or
* A treaty party is a country or intergovernmental
organization other than the United States that is a party
to an international agreement. • The work is first
published in the United States or in a foreign nation that,
on the date of first publication, is a treaty party. For
purposes of this condition, a work that is published in
the United States or a treaty party within 30 days after
publication in a foreign nation that is not a treaty party
shall be considered to be first published in the United
States or such treaty party, as the case may be; or
- The work is a sound recording that was first fixed in
a treaty party; or
- The work is a pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work that
is incorporated in a building or other structure, or an
architectural work that is embodied in a building and the
building or structure is located in the United States or
a treaty party; or
- The work is first published by the United Nations or any
of its specialized agencies, or by the Organization of American
States; or
- The work is a foreign work that was in the public domain
in the United States prior to 1996 and its copyright was
restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA).
Request "Highlights of Copyright Amendments Contained
in the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA-GATT)," for
further information.
- The work comes within the scope of a Presidential proclamation.
Get all of these details and more. Download
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to copyright your intellectual property.
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