Copyright Basics: Ownership

This is the first article in a series exploring the basics of Copyright Law so artists and content creators know what to look out for when entering into agreements over their works.

What is a copyright?

Before we jump into the finer points of licensing your works, lets first discuss what a copyright is. Copyrights are rights granted to content creators that afford them control and ownership of their works and creations. Under U.S. copyright law, owning the copyright on a work affords the owner the following rights:

·       Reproduction Rights

·       Derivative Works

·       Distribution Rights

·       Performance Rights

·       Public Display Rights

·       Digital Transmission Rights

Copyrights are granted for “original works of authorship”. This means that the work must not have existed prior (original) and must be the result of creative expression (authorship). The amount of creativity in the work does not need to be high. In fact, courts have ruled that even phone directories can have copyrights attached, for the order and arrangements of the phone number entries. Authors and content creators should note that their ownership of a work will only extend to the creative portions of the work. The owner of the copyright on a telephone directory does not extend to the actual numbers, only the arrangement.

Who gets a copyright? How do I get a copyright?

One thing for artists to remember is that a copyright is automatic.  Under U.S. law, a copyright for a work is automatically granted to the creator of the work, when the work is created. This means that you don’t need to publish your work, you don’t need to register your work (though you should), and there is absolutely no need to seal your work in an envelope and mail it to yourself.

For independent artists, this is just good information to know. The waters murky a bit where authors are under contract or are working through a commission. While the general rule is that a copyright is automatically granted to the content creator, there is a separate rule under U.S. law for works made for hire.

Works Made for Hire

Under the Work Made for Hire rules, works that are specifically commissioned and its agreed in writing that the work is made for hire, then the copyright is granted to the content creator’s employer. Works that are contracted for can fall under Works Made for Hire if they are commissioned for use:

·       as a contribution to a collective work;

·       as a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work;

·       as a translation;

·       as a supplementary work;

·       as a compilation;

·       as an instructional text;

·       as a test;

·       as answer material for a test; or

·       as an atlas,

In addition to content creators who are working on a commission, Work made for hire will also apply to content creators creating works under the scope of your employment. In these cases, the copyright will also be granted automatically to the employer. The term “under the scope of your employment” means that creation of the work needs to be part of your job. For example, if you are an in-house animator or a staff writer, things you create for your employer are likely the property of your employer. However, a coder who writes a song about the software he is working on, will likely own the rights to the song. Professional artists, those create works for their employers should note that the Work Made for Hire rules can be contracted around. If you are considering a  job where you will be creating works for your employer, you should strongly consider working out a contract with your prospective employer about what specific works should be considered works made for hire, and which are not. You want to have clear, written, boundaries, so that works that you create outside of work, on your own time, cannot be claimed by your employers.

Sticking Points

·       In most cases, a content creator is automatically granted a copyright for his or her works the moment the work is created.

·       A copyright is granted for works that are original and are the result of creative expression.

·       If you are an artist for an employer, your employer main own the copyrights for the works that you create for them.