[LUG] Useful Information

[Afterswift@aol.com]

The copyright law protects works of authorship, published or unpublished, in
any tangible medium of expression. Under this law, creators of, among other
things, books, theatrical works, computer programs, videotapes, movies,
music, lyrics, choreography, pantomimes, and recordings can secure exclusive
rights to perform, display, or reproduce their works. These individuals have
a property right in their work and may license it for reproduction or other
use.
     However, anyone may make "fair use" of copyrighted material. The
definition of this term depends on who is using the material, how much is
used, the percentage of the entire work that the excerpt used constitutes,
the purpose of the use, and the effect such use may have on the ability of
the copyright holder to derive income from his or her creation. For example,
a teacher may be able to photocopy a few pages of a book for use in a
classroom, but an advertising firm may be entitled to quote no more than a
few lines from the same book in an ad without obtaining permission from the
copyright holder. And while it may be lawful to quote 200 words from a novel
without asking permission, the same would not be true in the case of a poem
if the 200 words constituted the whole poem.
     The most recent version of the copyright law took effect in 1978. Works
created before 1978 are protected for 28 years from the time they were first
published. The copyright may be renewed for an additional 47 years. Works
created since the beginning of 1978 may be copyrighted for the life of the
author plus 50 years after his or her death. For works made for hire, and for
anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author's identity is revealed in
Copyright Office records), the term is 100 years from creation or 75 years
from first publication, whichever period is shorter.
     On March 1, 1989, the United States joined the Berne Convention for the
Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, an international copyright treaty.
Under this convention, works are copyrighted from the moment they are fixed,
or notated in some tangible form, such as in writing or on audiotape.
     Works published as of March 1, 1989, need not display a copyright
notice, but it is still recommended. Works created but not published before
1978 and works registered with the Copyright Office as unpublished works
before 1978 also need not display a copyright notice. Works published or
registered before March 1, 1989, are subject to pre-Berne requirements
regarding the display of a copyright notice.
     This notice includes the word "Copyright," or the abbreviation "Copr.,"
the year the work was first published, and the name of the owner of the
copyright. The copyright symbol, a "C" in a circle (except for recordings,
which use a circled "P"), must also be displayed.
     Displaying the notice of copyright is sufficient to establish exclusive
rights to an original work. However, formal registration of a copyright claim
is a prerequisite in many cases to filing suit for infringement for works
whose country of origin is the United States. In addition, subject to certain
exceptions, the remedies of statutory damages and attorneys' fees are not
available for those infringements occurring before registration.
     A copy of any work registered for copyright must be deposited with the
Library of Congress. Works that are not registered for copyright may also
need to be deposited there.
     In addition to the Berne Convention, the United States is also a member
of the Universal Copyright Convention, another multilateral agreement. Most
countries of the world belong to one or both of these conventions, offering
international copyright protection to works of American authors. The basic
feature of this protection is "national treatment," under which the alien
author is treated by a country in the same manner that it treats its own
authors.
     Filing for copyright registration presently costs $220. For more
information and application forms, write to:

Register of Copyrights
The Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20559



(c) 1993 by The New York Public Library and The Stonesong Press, Inc.