Here is some info. that may help some of you with Copyrights.
David Hallum
Editor MBN E-Mag's
Email: mbn@swbell.net
Personal Web Site: http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/4167
Business Web Site: http://members.tripod.com/~mbn/
January, 1991 page 1
CIRCULAR 22
HOW TO INVESTIGATE THE COPYRIGHT STATUS OF A WORK
Copyright Office
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20559
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HOW TO INVESTIGATE THE COPYRIGHT STATUS OF A WORK
IN GENERAL
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METHODS OF APPROACHING A COPYRIGHT INVESTIGATION
There are several ways to investigate whether a work is
under copyright protection and, if so, the facts of the
copyright. These are the main ones:
1. Examine a copy of the work (or, if the work is a sound
recording, examine the disk, tape cartridge, or cassette in
which the recorded sound is fixed, or the album cover,
sleeve, or container in which the recording is sold) for
such elements as a copyright notice, place and date of
publication, author and publisher (for additional
information, see p. 6, "Copyright Notice")
2. Make a search of the Copyright Office catalogs and other
records or
3. Have the Copyright Office make a search for you.
A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION ABOUT COPYRIGHT INVESTIGATIONS
Copyright investigations often involve more than one of
these methods. Even if you follow all three approaches, the
results may not be completely conclusive. Moreover, as explained
in this circular, the changes brought about under the Copyright
Act of 1976 and the Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988
must be considered when investigating the copyright status of a
work.
This circular offers some practical guidance on what to look
for if you are making a copyright investigation. It is important
to realize, however, that this circular contains only general
information, and that there are a number of exceptions to the
principles outlined here. In many cases it is important to
consult a copyright attorney before reaching any conclusions
regarding the copyright status of a work.
HOW TO SEARCH
COPYRIGHT OFFICE CATALOGS AND RECORDS
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CATALOG OF COPYRIGHT ENTRIES
The Copyright Office publishes the CATALOG OF COPYRIGHT
ENTRIES (CCE), in printed format from 1891 through 1978. From
1979 through 1982 the CCE was issued in microfiche format.
The catolog was divided into parts according to the classes of
works registered. Each CCE segment covered all registrations
made during a particular period of time. Renewal registrations
made from 1979 through 1982 are found in Section 8 of the
catalog. Renewals prior to that time were generally listed at
the end of the volume containing the class of work to which
they pertained.
A number of libraries throughout the United States maintain
copies of the CATALOG, and this may provide a good starting point
if you wish to make a search yourself. There are some cases,
however, in which a search of the CATALOG alone will not be
sufficient to provide the needed information. For example:
* Since the CATALOG does not include entries for assignments
or other recorded documents, it cannot be used for searches
involving the ownership of rights.
* The CATALOG entry contains the essential facts concerning a
registration, but it is not a verbatim transcript of the
registration record. It does not contain the address of the
copyright claimant.
Effective with registrations made since 1982, the only
method of searching outside the Library of Congress is by using
the Internet to access the automated catalog. The automated catolog
contains entries from 1978 forward. See page 4 for accessing the
catalog via the Internet.
INDIVIDUAL SEARCHES OF COPYRIGHT RECORDS
The Copyright Office is located in the Library of Congress
James Madison Memorial Building, 101 Independence Ave., S.E.,
Washington, D.C.
Most records of the Copyright Office are open to public
inspection and searching from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through
Friday (except legal holidays). The various records freely
available to the public include an extensive card catalog, an
automated catalog containing records from 1978 forward, record
books, and microfilm records of assignments and related
documents. Other records, including correspondence files and
deposit copies, are not open to the public for searching.
However, they may be inspected upon request and payment of a
$20-per hour search fee.
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If you wish to do your own searching in the Copyright Office
files open to the public, you will be given assistance in
locating the records you need and in learning searching
procedures. If the Copyright Office staff actually makes the
search for you, a search fee must be charged. The search will not
be done while you wait.
In addition, the following files dating from 1978 forward
are now available over the Internet: COHM, which includes all
materials except serials and documents; COHD, which includes
documents; and COHS, which includes serials.
The Internet site addresses for the Copyright Office
files are:
World Wide Web URL: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright
Gopher: marvel.loc.gov
Telnet: locis.loc.gov
The Copyright Office does not offer search assistance to
users on the Internet.
SEARCHING BY THE COPYRIGHT OFFICE
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IN GENERAL
Upon request, the Copyright Office staff will search its
records at the statutory rate of $20 for each hour or fraction of
an hour consumed. Based on the information you furnish, we will
provide an estimate of the total search fee. If you decide to
have the Office staff conduct the search, you should send the
estimated amount with your request. The Office will then proceed
with the search and send you a typewritten report or, if you
prefer, an oral report by telephone. If you request an oral
report, please provide a telephone number where you can be
reached during normal business hours (8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern
time).
Search reports can be certified on request, for an extra fee
of $20. Certified searches are most frequently requested to meet
the evidentiary requirements of litigation.
Your request, and any other correspondence, should be
addressed to :
Reference and Bibliography Section, LM-451
Copyright Office
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 20559
(202) 707-6850
WHAT THE FEE DOES NOT COVER
Note that the search fee does NOT include the cost of
additional certificates, photocopies of deposits, or copies of
other Office records. For information concerning these services,
request Circular 6.
INFORMATION NEEDED
The more detailed information you can furnish with your
request, the less time-consuming and expensive the search will
be. Please provide as much of the following information as
possible:
* The title of the work, with any possible variants
* The names of the authors, including possible pseudonyms
* The name of the probable copyright owner, which may be the
publisher or producer
* The approximate year when the work was published or
registered
* The type of work involved (book, play, musical composition,
sound recording, photograph, etc.)
* For a work originally published as a part of a periodical or
collection, the title of that publication and any other
information, such as the volume or issue number, to help
identify it
* Motion pictures are often based on other works such as books
or serialized contributions to periodicals or other
composite works. If you desire a search for an underlying
work or for music from a motion picture, you must
specifically request such a search. You must also identify
the underlying works and music and furnish the specific
titles, authors, and approximate dates of these works and
* The registration number or any other copyright data.
SEARCHES INVOLVING ASSIGNMENTS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS AFFECTING
COPYRIGHT OWNERSHIP
The Copyright Office staff will also, for the standard
hourly search fee, search its indexes covering the records of
assignments and other recorded documents concerning ownership of
copyrights. The reports of searches in these cases will state
the facts shown in the Office's indexes of the recorded
documents, but will offer no interpretation of the content of the
documents or their legal effect.
LIMITATIONS ON SEARCHES
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In determining whether or not to have a search made, you
should keep the following points in mind:
NO SPECIAL LISTS
The Copyright Office does not maintain any listings of works
by subject, or any lists of works that are in the public domain.
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CONTRIBUTIONS
Individual works, such as stories, poems, articles, or
musical compositions that were published as contributions to a
copyrighted periodical or collection, are usually not listed
separately by title in our records.
NO COMPARISONS
The Copyright Office does not search or compare copies of
works to determine questions of possible infringement or to
determine how much two or more versions of a work have in common.
TITLES AND NAMES NOT COPYRIGHTABLE
Copyright does not protect names and titles, and our records
list many different works identified by the same or similar
titles. Some brand names, trade names, slogans, and phrases may
be entitled to protection under the general rules of law relating
to unfair competition, or to registration under the provisions of
the trademark laws. Questions about the trademark laws should be
addressed to the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks,
Washington, D.C. 20231. Possible protection of names and titles
under common law principles of unfair competition is a question
of state law.
NO LEGAL ADVICE
The Copyright Office cannot express any opinion as to the
legal significance or effect of the facts included in a search
report.
SOME WORDS OF CAUTION
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SEARCHES NOT ALWAYS CONCLUSIVE
Searches of the Copyright Office catalogs and records are
useful in helping to determine the copyright status of a work,
but they cannot be regarded as conclusive in all cases. The
complete absence of any information about a work in the office
records does not mean that the work is unprotected. The following
are examples of cases in which information about a particular
work may be incomplete or lacking entirely in the Copyright
Office:
* Before1978, unpublished works were entitled to protection
at common law without the need of registration.
* Works published with notice prior to 1978 may be registered
at any time within the first 28-year term to obtain renewal
protection, however, the claimant must register and renew
such work by the end of the 28th year.
* For works that came under copyright protection after
1978, registration may be made at any time during the term
of protection it is not generally required as a condition of
copyright protection (there are, however, certain definite
advantages to registration please call or write for Circular
1, "Copyright Basics").
* Since searches are ordinarily limited to registrations that
have already been cataloged, a search report may not cover
recent registrations for which catalog records are not yet
available.
* The information in the search request may not have been
complete or specific enough to identify the work.
* The work may have been registered under a different title or
as part of a larger work.
PROTECTION IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES
Even if you conclude that a work is in the public domain in
the United States, this does not necessarily mean that you are
free to use it in other countries. Every nation has its own laws
governing the length and scope of copyright protection, and these
are applicable to uses of the work within that nation's borders.
Thus, the expiration or loss of copyright protection in the
United States may still leave the work fully protected against
unauthorized use in other countries.
OTHER CIRCULARS
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For further information, request Circulars 15, "Renewal of
Copyright," 15a. "Duration of Copyright," 15t, "Extension of
Copyright Terms," and 6, "Obtaining Copies of Copyright Office
Records and Deposits," from:
Publications Section, LM-455
Copyright Office
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 20559
OR
You may call (202) 707-9100 at any time, day or night, to
leave a request for forms or circulars as a recorded message on
the Forms HOTLINE. Requests made on the HOTLINE number are filled
and mailed promptly.
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IMPACT OF COPYRIGHT ACT ON
COPYRIGHT INVESTIGATIONS
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On October 19, 1976, the President signed into law a
complete revision of the copyright law of the United States
(Title 17 of the United States Code). Most provisions of this
statute came into force on January 1, 1978, superseding the
previous copyright act of 1909. These changes made significant
changes in the copyright law. Futher important changes resulted
from the Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988, which took
effect March 1, 1989, and the Copyright Renewal Act of 1992
(P.L. 102-307) enacted June 26,1992, which amended the renewal
provisions of the copyright law. If you need more information
about the provisions of either the 1909 or the 1976 law, write
or call the Copyright Office. For information about the Berne
Convention Implementation Act, request Circular 93, "Highlights of
U.S. Adherence to the Bernet Convention." For information about
renewals, request Circular 15, "Renewal of Copyright." For single
copies of the law only, request Circular 92, "Copyright Law of the
United States of America," from:
Publications Section, LM-455
Copyright Office
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
For multiple copies of the law, request "Copyright Law,
Circular 92" $4.75 each, stock number 030-002-00182-9 from:
New Orders
Superintendent of Documents
P.O. Box 371954
Pittsburgh, PA 1520-7954
Tel: (202) 783-3238
Fax: (202) 512-2250
For copyright investigations, the following are some of the
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