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When tasked with the issues concerning copyright, it can be downright confusing to try to understand which royalty is paid to whom, which form is used to register a recording, or what measures can be taken if someone infringes a copyright that belongs to you. The following advice will start a series of articles that will allow you to take a look at basic copyright issues that every artist, musician, and songwriter needs to be familiar with.
What is a copyright?
Copyright is a protection is for original works of authorship. Works of authorship include musical, literary, dramatic, choreographic, pictorial, sculptural, audiovisual, architectural works and sound recordings. Five exclusive rights are given to the owner of an original work. The owner has the right to the following:
To reproduce the copyrighted work
To prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work
To distribute copies to the public
To perform the work publicly (also by means of digital transmission)
To display the copyrighted work publicly (graphic / sculptural works)
How is a work copyrighted?
Often times I am asked, "How do I copyright my song?" My answer is always the same, "It is already copyrighted, it is just not registered." Let me explain this. The current Copyright Act states that copyright protection subsists in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression. That means that the moment a work is created it is protected and copyrighted. There has to be more to it, right? Right.
Copyright registration
When a person asks, "How do I copyright my song?" they are asking the wrong question. The question needs to be, "How do I register my song or recording and why is that to my benefit?" Copyrights are registered with the Library of Congress and all that is required is a copy of the work, the correct form properly filled out, and a check or money order for $30.
What is the purpose of registering a copyright?
There are many reasons for registering but the main reason is to protect yourself in case someone else infringes on your rights. Here’s an example. You write a song and another person steals the song and makes $100,000 in royalties from it. If you registered the song with the Copyright Office, then the infringer would have to prove that they did not infringe upon your rights. If you did not register the copyright and infringement occurred, you would have to prove that the infringer had access to your work and that a substantial similarity exists between your original work and the infringed work in question. Proving that your work was stolen is a very difficult and expensive process. If the work was registered you are entitled to past and future royalties, whereas in the case of the work being unregistered, you would only be entitled to future royalties.
What does this mean again?
In the case that your original work is used without permission, stolen, or infringed upon by any other means, registration puts the burden of proof on the infringer. They would have to prove that they did not do anything that infringed upon your rights as the author of the original work in question. This makes your chance of being successful in court far greater, and the law provides a means for restitution that otherwise would be forfeited if the copyright were not registered.
Sreve Allen
http://www.squareonestudio.com
Reader Comments
Daniel is correct, however the fee was just raised from $30 to $45.
Deon Unthank
SoGospelNews.com
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Russ Harrison
Although the law does use the word "exclusive" when describing the five types of rights held by a copyright owner, that language is qualified with the words "subject to sections 107 through 122."So the wording of the law is misleading...these rights are described as "exclusive" and subject to sections 107 through 122 in the same sentence. Sections 107 through 122 outline a confusing array of exceptions to the so called "exclusive" rights. If there are exceptions (fair use, scholarly study, critical commentary, etc.), then by the very definition of the word, they can't be called "exclusive."
This is one of the most annoying aspects of copyright law. It's been mulled over and modified after someone said "but what if" so many time that nothing in the law is ever what it first appears to be.
--Making hay while the sun shines--
sgnforum@musicscribe.com - BLOG - SGHistory.com
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Written: 10/01/2006 
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Steve Allen
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