What is any idea or artistic creation that is recorded in some form?


What does copyright protect?
Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section "What Works Are Protected."

Can I copyright my website?
The original authorship appearing on a website may be protected by copyright. This includes writings, artwork, photographs, and other forms of authorship protected by copyright. Procedures for registering the contents of a website may be found in Circular 66, Copyright Registration of Websites and Website Content.

Can I copyright my domain name?
Copyright law does not protect domain names. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a nonprofit organization that has assumed the responsibility for domain name system management, administers the assigning of domain names through accredited registers.

How do I protect my recipe?
A mere listing of ingredients is not protected under copyright law. However, where a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a collection of recipes as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection. Note that if you have secret ingredients to a recipe that you do not wish to be revealed, you should not submit your recipe for registration, because applications and deposit copies are public records. See Circular 33, Works Not Protected by Copyright.

Can I copyright the name of my band?
No. Names are not protected by copyright law. Some names may be protected under trademark law. Contact the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, [email protected] or see Circular 33 "Copyright Protection Not Available for Names, Titles, or Short Phrases".

How do I copyright a name, title, slogan, or logo?
Copyright does not protect names, titles, slogans, or short phrases. In some cases, these things may be protected as trademarks. Contact the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, [email protected] or see Circular 33, for further information. However, copyright protection may be available for logo artwork that contains sufficient authorship. In some circumstances, an artistic logo may also be protected as a trademark.

How do I protect my idea? Copyright does not protect ideas, concepts, systems, or methods of doing something. You may express your ideas in writing or drawings and claim copyright in your description, but be aware that copyright will not protect the idea itself as revealed in your written or artistic work.


Does my work have to be published to be protected?

Publication is not necessary for copyright protection. “Publication” is the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending. The offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display, constitutes publication. A public performance or display of a work does not of itself constitute publication.


Can I register a diary I found in my grandmother's attic?


You can register copyright in the diary within a certain duration only if you own the rights to the work, for example, by will or by inheritance. Copyright is the right of the author of the work or the author's heirs or assignees, not of the one who only owns or possesses the physical work itself. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Who Can Claim Copyright.”

How do I protect my sighting of Elvis?
Copyright law does not protect sightings. However, copyright law will protect your photo (or other depiction) of your sighting of Elvis. File your claim to copyright online by means of the electronic Copyright Office (eCO). Pay the fee online and attach a copy of your photo. For more information on registering a copyright, see Circular 2, Copyright Registration. No one can lawfully use your photo of your sighting, although someone else may file his own photo of his sighting. Copyright law protects the original photograph, not the subject of the photograph.

Does copyright protect architecture?
Yes. Architectural works became subject to copyright protection on December 1, 1990. The copyright law defines “architectural work” as “the design of a building embodied in any tangible medium of expression, including a building, architectural plans, or drawings.” Copyright protection extends to any architectural work created on or after December 1, 1990. Also, any architectural works that were unconstructed and embodied in unpublished plans or drawings on that date and were constructed by December 31, 2002, are eligible for protection. Architectural designs embodied in buildings constructed prior to December 1, 1990, are not eligible for copyright protection. See Circular 41, Copyright Claims in Architectural Works

Can I get a star named after me and claim copyright to it?
No. There is a lot of misunderstanding about this. Names are not protected by copyright. Publishers of works such as a star registry may register a claim to copyright in the text of the volume [or book] containing the names the registry has assigned to stars, and perhaps the compilation of data; but such a registration would not extend protection to any of the individual star names appearing therein. Copyright registration of such a volume of star names does not confer any official or governmental status on any of the star names included in the volume. For further information on copyright protection and names, see Circular 33, Works Not Protected by Copyright

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QuestionAnswer
1.Any idea or artistic creation that is recorded in some form, whether it’s hard copy or digital.CREATIVE WORK
2.A law that protects your control over the creative work you make so that people must get your permission before they copy, share, or perform your work.download 3.A kind of copyright that makes it easier for people to copy, share, and build on your creative work, as long as they give you credit for it. CREATIVE COMMONS: 4.A clear way to define the copyright of your creative work so people know how it can be used.download 5.Stealing copyrighted work by downloading or copying it in order to keep, sell, or give it away without permission and without paying.download 6.Copying, “lifting,” or making slight changes to some or all of someone else’s work and saying you created it.download 7.Creative work that’s not copyrighted and therefore free for you to use however you want.PUBLIC DOMAIN: 8.The ability to use a small amount of copyrighted work without permission, but only in certain ways and in specific situations (schoolwork and education, news reporting, criticizing or commenting on something, and comedy/parody)FAIR USE: 9.Amy decided to ______________________ her paper for class by copying and pasting from Wikipedia and saying she wrote it.PLAGIARIZE 10.Because Zoe used a small amount of a movie in a remix video she made that pokes fun at the main character, she could say it’s ________________________. FAIR USE 11. Robbie found a photo in the _____________________ that’s no longer copyrighted, so he could use it however he wants. PUBLIC DOMAIN 12. Angela has a Flickr page with all of her photos, and in order to define for others how she wants her photos to be used, she created a copyright ___________________ that is listed on her page. LICENSE 13. Alex had an idea for a poem in his head for the longest time, but once he finally wrote it down it instantly had a __________________________. COPYRIGHT 14. Eric uses a program where he “rips” movies and “burns” them to DVDs, which he then sells to friends. What Eric is doing is called _______________________.PIRACY 15. When Dwayne used a kind of copyright to make it easy for others to copy and share his video, he was using _______________________________. CREATIVE COMMONS 16. Books, movies, music, websites, games, and pieces of art are all examples of ______________________________________.CREATIVE WORK

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