Rule Set Copyright

I have been doing some checking on copyright laws. The main points I found are:

Publication or registration in the Copyright Office is NOT required to secure copyright. Copyright is secured automatically when the work is created, and a work is “created” when it is fixed in a copy for the first time. “Copies” are material objects from which a work can be read or visually perceived such as books, manuscripts, or videotape. A copyright is ordinarily given a term enduring for the author’s life plus an additional 70 years after the author’s death.

Publication is no longer the key to obtaining federal copyright as it was under the Copyright Act of 1909. However, publication remains important to copyright owners.
The 1976 Copyright Act defines publication as follows: “Publication” is the distribution of copies of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending.

The use of a copyright notice is no longer required under U. S. law, although it is often beneficial. The use of the copyright notice is the responsibility of the copyright owner and does not require advance permission from, or registration with, the Copyright Office.

The notice for visually perceptible copies should contain all the following three elements:
The symbol © (the letter C in a circle), or the word “Copyright,” or the abbreviation “Copr.”
The year of first publication of the work
The name of the owner of copyright in the work, or an abbreviation by which the name can be recognized, or a generally known alternative designation of the owner
The author or copyright owner may wish to place a copyright notice on any unpublished copies that leave his or her control.

Example: © 2008 John Doe
Example: Unpublished work © 2008 Jane Doe

There is no such thing as an “international copyright” that will automatically protect an author’s writings throughout the entire world. Protection against unauthorized use in a particular country depends, basically, on the national laws of that country.

In general, copyright registration is a legal formality intended to make a public record of the basic facts of a particular copyright. However, registration is not a condition of copyright protection. The copyright law provides several inducements or advantages to encourage copyright owners to make registration. Among these advantages are the following:

Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim.
Before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration is necessary for works of U. S. origin.
If made before or within five years of publication, registration will establish prima facie evidence in court of the validity of the copyright and of the facts stated in the certificate.If registration is made within three months after publication of the work or prior to an infringement of the work, statutory damages and attorney’s fees will be available to the copyright owner in court actions. Otherwise, only an award of actual damages and profits is available to the copyright owner.

Registration may be made at any time within the life of the copyright. Unlike the law before 1978, when a work has been registered in unpublished form, it is not necessary to make another registration when the work becomes published, although the copyright owner may register the published edition, if desired.

Mandatory Deposit requires the owner of copyright to deposit in the U.S. Copyright Office for the use of the Library of Congress two complete copies of the best edition within 3 months after a work is published. The registration process satisfies this requirement.

Full instructions for submitting a registration can be found at http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.pdf

The cost is $35 per submission.