HOW TO COPYRIGHT
Introduction
Copyright is a protection to the work done by the author. It gives the author of the original work an exclusive right regarding that work, including its publication, distribution and adaptation for a certain predefined period after which the work is said to enter the public domain. Copyright is the right granted for the expression of the idea. Thus, it is different from a patent which is a far more strict right granted for the protection of new inventions.
What May be Copyrighted?
A copyrightable work must be
- fixed in a tangible medium of expression and
- original
Copyrights do not protect ideas, procedures, processes, systems, methods of operation, concepts, principles, or discoveries: they only protect physical representations, thus expression.
Who May Hold a Copyright?
A copyright generally lies with the creator or creators of a work (known as the author(s)), and is inherited as ordinary property. Copyrights are freely transferrable as property, by the sole decision of the owner. In some cases, however, the actual creator is not considered the owner of the work for copyright purposes. This is the case when the work is done or created by an employee during the course of his employment under the employer. Here the employer, not the employee, gets the ownership over the copyright work. In case the employer is working for a govt. agency or an organization, then the govt. or the organization will get the ownership over the copyright work.
Rights Protected by Copyright?
- the right of reproduction (i.e., copying)
- the right to create derivative works,
- the right to distribution,
- the right to performance,
- the right to display
- The digital transmission performance right.
Copyright in different countries
Different countries have different copyright laws. The major differences lie in:
- whether or not the government work falls under copyright,
- how much longer copyright lasts after the author dies or after the work is created or published, and
- what is and what is not fair use
Because of these differences, a certain piece of work may be under copyright in one country, and in the public domain in another. However the copyright laws of all the countries are in tune with the Bern Convention, 1886 or Universal Copyright convention, 1952 which provide a standardization of the national copyright laws of different countries.
Length of Copyright Protection
The copyright protection period varies from country to country, however it is usually over 50 years. When the period of copyright protection has ended, the written document, musical composition, book, picture, or other creative work enters the public domain. This means that everyone is free to copy, use and change the work without any prior permission of the owner.
Getting the copyright
To obtain a copyright is not a tough task once you are clear with the concept of copyright. In most countries, you can avail this protection right with a simple 3 step procedure to follow. For e.g. in the US to obtain a copyright on your work the 3 steps are a) filing an application b) submitting a nominal fee (usually 45$) and c) mailing the work to be copyrighted, which will not be returned. To be honest every work created gets automatically copyrighted, the above procedure is just to be on the safer side to avoid any dispute regarding ownership.
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