Copyright
Copyright law protects "works of authorship." This means that there must be an author—a human being—and work created by the author. Works are typically thought of as pieces of literature, music, drama, choreography, photography, graphic arts, sculpture, motion pictures, videos, architecture, and computer software, although virtually any other work that is fixed in a tangible medium can be protected by copyright law.
To receive copyright protection, a work must be "original" and must be "fixed" in a tangible medium of expression. The originality requirement is easy to satisfy. A work is original for copyright purposes if it owes its origin to the author and was not itself copied. A work can incorporate preexisting material and still be original. When this happens, the copyright on the new work covers only the original material contributed by the author.
A work is "fixed" in a tangible form when it is made sufficiently permanent or stable to permit it to be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated for a period of time. It makes no difference what the form, manner, or medium is. An author can "fix" words, for example, by writing them down, typing them into a computer, dictating them into a tape recorder, or scratching them on a tablet. A live television broadcast is "fixed" if it is recorded simultaneously with the transmission. But a Homeric bard, reciting The Iliad around an ancient fire, does not fix his work in a tangible medium, and therefore is bereft of copyright protection.The design of an object, such as furniture, is protected by copyright only if the design incorporates features that can be identified separately from, and are capable of existing independently of, the useful aspects of the article. For example, while the design of a basic chair is not protected by copyright, a chair that uses antlers as arms may qualify for certain protection.
Copyright protection arises automatically when an original work of authorship is fixed in a tangible medium. Registration with the Copyright Office is optional, though it is virtually essential in connection with litigation. The use of the copyright notice is optional for works distributed after March 1, 1989. Copyright notices generally take the following form: © followed by a date and name.
A copyright owner has five exclusive rights in the copyrighted work:
1. Reproduction: the right to copy, duplicate, transcribe, or imitate the work in fixed form.
2. Modification: the right to modify the work to create a new work (also called the derivative right). A new work that is based on a preexisting work is known as a "derivative work."
3. Distribution: the right to distribute copies of the work to the public.
4. Public Performance: the right to perform the work in a public place.
5. Public Display: the right to show the work in a public place.
Anyone who violates any of these exclusive rights is an infringer. A copyright owner can recover actual or, in some cases, statutory damages from an infringer. The federal district courts have the power to issue injunctions to prevent or restrain copyright infringement and to order the impoundment and destruction of infringing copies.
Under current law, the copyright term for works created by individuals is the life of the author plus 70 years. The copyright term for works “made for hire" is 95 years from the date of first "publication" (distribution of copies to the general public) or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever expires first. Works “made for hire” are works created by employees for their employers and certain types of works commissioned from independent contractors.
The copyright owner's exclusive rights are subject to a number of important exceptions. These are:
1. Ideas. Copyright protects only the unauthorized taking of a protected work's "expression." It does not extend to the work's ideas, concepts, principles, or discoveries. Ideas that are inventions may be covered by patent law.
2. Facts. The facts contained in a work are not protected by copyright, even if the author spent large amounts of time discovering them. Copyright protects originality, not effort.
3. Independent Creation. A copyright owner has no claim against another person who, working independently, creates an exact duplicate of the copyrighted work. The independent creation of a similar work or even an exact duplicate does not violate any of the copyright owner's rights.
4. Fair Use. The "fair use" of a copyrighted work, including use for purposes such as criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. The Copyright Act does not define fair use. Instead, whether a use is “fair” is determined by balancing the purpose and character of the use, the nature of the copyrighted work, the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole, and the effect of the use on the value of the copyrighted work. Lots to litigate here.