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There are two reasons for having at least a basic understanding of copyright:
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There are several basic items that are of importance:
For additional information, visit the U.S. Copyright Office Home Page.
Copyright protects expression in a tangible form.
The Copyright Act of 1976 states that the forms of expression can include literary, dramatic, and musical works, pantomimes and choreography, pictorial, graphic and sculptural works, audio-visual works, sound recordings, and architectural works.
An original expression is eligible for copyright protection as soon as it is fixed in a tangible form. This means that this web page is protected as soon as I stop typing and save it. It also means that an idea that you have in your mind is not protected until you "fix" it in some tangible form.
Some things, by their very nature are not eligible for copyright protection:
Ideas
Ideas have no tangible form. Only the "expression" of ideas in tangible form is protected. The same idea, expressed in another way can also be protected by someone else.
Ideas can sometimes be protected by patents. Patents are difficult to obtain, very expensive, and subject to challenge. Patents are not discussed here.
Processes and Methods
A process is not copyrightable. If you want, you can spend $3000 to $100,000 or more to try to patent it. For something like this, you are unlikely to be successful. In general, copyright covers only the "tangible" expression of an idea, not the idea itself. Thus, your instructions for doing a new technique are copyrightable. The new technique may be patentable (expensive) but it is not copyrightable. Someone else can come up with a different set of instructions for the same technique and they are not infringing on your copyright.
Facts
Facts are not an "expression" — they are a reality. How the facts are presented or compiled may be an expression that is eligible for copyright.
Titles
Titles are not protected because we would soon run out of good titles, and because it would cause trademark problems.
A title cannot be used as a trademark. However a phrase or logo used across several titles, to identify a product line for commercial purposes, can be protected. Trademarks are not discussed here.
Names
Names are not protected because we would soon run out of names.
Short phrases
Short phrases are not protected because we would soon run out of words. A work must have a reasonable length to be protected so that there is no conflict with a trademark, and so that the language cannot be appropriated by a few individuals.
Typefaces
Typefaces are not protected because we would soon run out of letters.
The following things (among others) are eligible for copyright protection:
Doll patterns.
Dolls (as sculpture)
Photographs of dolls
Books and videos about dolls or dollmaking
Collections of information about sources for dollmaking
Dollmaker's web pages
Until 1988, in order to have any copyright protection at all, and prevent the work from going into the public domain, a copyright notice had to be attached to the work to put the world on notice that the work was protected. While this is no longer true, it is still a good idea to attach a copyright notice to copyrighted works in order to be eligible for certain types of damages under the law. (You can't sue for infringement and collect damages in some cases if there is no copyright notice.)
There are five elements to the copyright notice:
The word "Copyright"
The term "Copyright" is technically not required in the copyright notice. However, because it is difficult to reproduce the © symbol in some media, the term "Copyright" may now be substituted for the copyright symbol in the United States. In many cases, both are used.
The copyright symbol (a "c" in a circle, ©)
The copyright symbol is required in many foreign countries in order to obtain copyright. In the United States, the term "Copyright" may be substituted for the copyright symbol. This makes notification on some computer documents much easier.
The year of copyright
The name of the copyright holder
The Copyright Notice must include the name of the owner of the copyright. The legal owner of the copyright is not necessarily the author or creator of the work. Copyrights can be assigned or sold, and some works are "made-for-hire" where the employer owns the copyright by legal agreement.
The phrase: "All Rights Reserved"
Two South American countties require that you follow the requirements of the Buenos Aires Convention. This requires the phrase "All Rights Reserved" to be included in the Copyright Notice.
How long a copyright lasts depends on when the work was created.
If the work was created before January 1, 1978, the copyright expires 75 years from the date of publication (if the copyright was renewed). That means that anything older than 1925 or so is now part of the public domain (not protected).
If the work was created after January 1, 1978, and the copyright is owned by an individual, the copyright will last for the life of the author, plus an additional 50 years.
If the work was created after January 1, 1978, and the copyright is owned by the employer of the author, the copyright will last 75 years from the date of publication, or 100 years from the date of creation, whichever occurs first.
The Copyright Act gives you protection just for creating your work and fixing it in a tangible form. The registration process is easy and straightforward, and the fees are reasonable, but, if you already have protection, why bother registering your work with the U.S. Copyright Office?
The ability to sue
You cannot actually sue someone for infringing your copyright until you have registered your work with the Copyright Office.
Satutory damages
If you register your work within three months from the date of first publication, you can collect statutory damages from the infringer. Otherwise, you can only collect actual damages, which may be minimal.
To register your work, you fill out the appropriate form, and send it with your check and the required number of copies of your work to the U.S. Copyright Office at the address below. All three elements (application, check, and copies) must be in the same envelope or package. The following forms are useful (there are some others for other kinds of work):
Form TX:
Form TX is used for non-dramatic literary works such as doll patterns and books about dollmaking. This does not include newspapers, bulletins, newsletters, or other periodicals.
Form VA:
Form VA: is used for visual arts such as pictures of dolls, dolls themselves (as sculpture), and videos about dolls or dollmaking. For sculptures, you can usually send photographs of the sculpture instead of the sculpture itself.
Complete the application form using black ink pen or typewriter. You may photocopy blank application forms: however, photocopied forms submitted to the Copyright Office must be clear, legible, on a good grade of 8-1/2 inch by 11 inch white paper suitable for automatic feeding through a photocopier. The forms should be printed preferably in black ink, head-to-head (so that when you turn the sheet over, the top of page 2 is directly behind the top of page 1). Forms not meeting these requirements will be returned.
A nonrefundable filing fee of $20 must accompany each application.
Copies of the work must accompany the application:
If the work is unpublished, one complete copy
If the work was first published in the United States on or after January 1, 1978, two complete copies of the best edition.
If the work was first published outside the United States, one complete copy of the work as first published.
In the case of works reproduced in three-dimensional copies, identifying material such as photographs or drawings is ordinarily required.
Requestors may order application forms and circulars at any time by telephoning (202) 707-9100. Orders will be recorded automatically and filled as quickly as possible. Please specify the kind and number of forms you are requesting.
You may also obtain forms and instruction booklets on-line at the U.S. Copyright Office Home Page.
All applications and materials related to copyright registration should be addressed to:
Register of Copyrights
Copyright Office
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
The application, nonreturnable deposit (copies or identifying material), and nonrefundable filing fee should be mailed in the same package.
You can be sued:
If the work is registered within three months from the date of first publication, you can be sued for statutory damages. Statutory damages can be up to $100,000 plus attorney fees and court costs. How much you will have to pay depends on whether the court thinks the infringement was malicious.
If the work was not registered within three months from the date of first publication, you can only be sued for three times actual damages. Actual damages are how much money the author of the work lost because of the infringement. For example, if you sell two doll patterns at $10 each and make a profit of $16 ($8 each copy), the most you can pay in damages is $48 (3 times actual damages) — not enough to pay an attorney. However, you have no way of knowing if the pattern is registered, so you could end up losing your home for a single copy. Even if you give it away instead of selling it, it is an infiringement because you took a potential sale away from the copyright owner.
On a practical basis, nobody wants to sue and take away your house for making a copy of a pattern or selling a doll made from a pattern. If you make a few copies of a pattern or sell a few dolls on a local basis without attracting much attention, you will be breaking the law, but you aren't likely to be caught. On the other hand, if you set up a factory and produce thousands of copied patterns or dolls, you are certain to get caught and certain to pay a whole lot.
There are a few exceptions granted in the copyright law where you can make a copy without penalty. These exceptions are called "Fair Use." In general, there are only two or three cases you will ever see:
A short portion of a work can be quoted in a review.
A short portion of a work can be quoted in a sales brochure by a company reselling the product.
A short portion of a work can be quoted in a compilation or catalog describing similar such works.
All of these uses are subject to judicial review. There is no sure way to know that it is safe to make copies except to have the copyright owner's permission.
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Copyright © Jim and Gloria Winer. |
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