Public Domain

I realize that I discussed copyright in my blog yesterday but I mentioned nothing related to public domain. I apologize.

Public domain refers to works that can be used by anyone for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you go to the government copyright website and read about what is in the public domain, it is pretty confusing. I checked numerous sources and I was still a little confused. This is probably because I never have been a “date” person. I will do my best to explain.

First, there are two types of works you can be certain are in the public domain.

1. Any work published before 1923.

2. Any government work

For any other works you have to follow the following guidelines to determine when they will enter into public domain.

1. If a work was published between 1923 and 1963, copyright protects that work for 28 years, unless it was renewed for an additional 67 years.

2. If a work was published between 1964 and 1977 the copyright was renewed automatically providing copyright protection for a total of 95 years.

3. If a work was created before 1978 but never published, it is protected for 70 years after the author's death or the end of 2002, whichever is later.

4. If a work was created before 1978 and published between 1978 and the end of 2002, it is protected for 70 years after the author's death or the end of 2047, whichever is later.

Finally, any works created after 1978 are automatically protected from the moment they are created. They are protected for 70 years after the author's death. If the work was made anonymously or under a pseudonym for which the copyright office does not know the true identity, the work will be protected for 95 years after publication or 120 years after creation, whichever is shorter.

Resources

Fair Use in a Nutshell. Retrieved October 29, 2007, from http://copylaw.com/new_articles/fairuse.html

U.S. Copyright Office - Copyright Law. Retrieved October 29, 2007, from http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#107

WHEN WORKS PASS INTO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. Retrieved October 30, 2007, from http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm