Copyright basics  Tags: copyright music_downloading riaa digital_millenium_copyright_act public_domain  

In 1787, James Madison submitted to the framers of the Constitution a provision to secure to literary authors the copyrights of their works for a limited time. 

On May 31st of 1790, the first copyright law enacted under the new U.S. Constitution. It provided copyright for a term of 14 years with privilege of renewal for term of 14 years.

On June 9th of that year, the first copyright entry, The Philadelphia Spelling Book by John Barry,  was registered in the U.S. District Court of Pennsylvania.

In 1897, the Copyright Office established as a separate department of the Library of Congress and the position of Register of Copyrights was created.

Copyright law has been revised and added to a number of times; in 1947, it was codified into positive law as title 17 of the U.S. Code.

What is Copyright?

According to the U.S. Copyright Office, copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works. 

FACT #1 Copyright laws apply to written works including:

FACT #2 If a work lacks a © symbol or copyright notice, it does not mean you can use it freely. Copyright applies to a work as soon as it is fixed in a tangible form. A person does not have to be registered with the US Copyright Office for infringement action to be taken.

FACT #3 Acknowledging the source of a copyrighted material is not a substitute for obtaining permission.

FACT #4 Only the copyright owner has the exclusive rights to reproduce or display publicly their work. Only they can give permission for others to do the same.

FACT #5 There are cases where it is permitted to “borrow” materials without obtaining the copyright holder’s permission. This is called fair use.