A Copyrightis the ownership of intellectual property that is
- an original creation
- which is in a tangible form
- and which falls within the U.S. Copyright Act.
Works which can be copyrighted include books, articles, works of art, fabric works, sculpture, photographs, poems, plays, dances, musical compositions, television and radio broadcasts, computer software, and industrial designs.
A work is copyrighted when it is produced and the person who created the work sets a copyright designation on it. A copyright may also be secured by registering it.
To determine when a copyright expires (goes into the public domain), you have to know the date it was first copyrighted or published. In general, for works published after 1/1/1978, a copyright expires with the death of the author plus 70 years. The Inventors GuideSite has more detailed information on copyright expiration.
