Copyright law for dummies

Copyright protects the original forms or way an idea or information is expressed, not the idea or information itself. The most common form of copyright are writing, visual images, music and moving images. Copyright provides an owner of a material with exclusive economic rights to do certain acts with that material.

Copyright refers to the legal right of the owner of intellectual property. In simpler terms, copyright is the right to copy. This means that the original creators of products and anyone they give authorization to are the only ones with the exclusive right to reproduce the work.

Under the Copyright Act, a copyright owner has the exclusive right to reproduce, adapt, distribute, publicly perform, and publicly display the work (or to authorize others to do so). In the case of sound recordings, the copyright owner has the right to perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

Copyright Law: The Legal Background

The U.S.
Constitution grants Congress the power to enact a federal system of copyright laws.
Although a federal statute governs copyright law, there are also some state laws on copyright that deal with issues not covered by the federal law.

How do I get a copyright?

The United States Copyright Office offers a number of guides for a general audience, called "circulars," about copyright law.
There are three basic elements that a work must possess in order to be protected by copyright in the US:

Originality:

To get a copyright

a work must be the original work of the author.

How long does a copyright last?

For works made for hire and anonymous or pseudonymous works, copyright protection is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.
Works created before 1978 have a different timeframe.
Learn more about copyright duration in our Duration of Copyrights Circular.
When can I use works that are not mine? .

The Creator Is Generally The First Owner of Copyright

The general rule of ownership is that the first owner of copyright is a work's creator or author.
This is subject to a number of exceptions.
One such exception is the “work for hire” provision under which employers are, under certain conditions, the author and owner of copyright in works created by employees during the course of their employment.
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U.S. Copyright Law Basics

Anyone dealing with issues related to copyright and licensing in the U.S., whether creators or users of copyright-protected materials, needs a basic understanding of U.S. copyright law.
What rights are covered under copyright.
Who owns copyright in a work.
And how long does copyright last.
This simple guide to U.S copyright law basics will help you.