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1 1 (March 7, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govekun0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Informing the legislative debate since 1914 March 7, 2023 Copyright Law: An Introduction and Issues for Congress Copyright law grants the authors of original creative works a set of exclusive rights in their creations, including the right to prevent others from copying or selling the work without the copyright holder's permission. The U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to create a copyright system to promote the progress of science and learning. The main goal of copyright law is to spur the growth and spread of knowledge by encouraging authors to create new works. Copyright protections are critical to many areas of the U.S. economy, particularly in industries such as entertainment and technology. A study by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office found that copyright-intensive industries-such as computer software, motion pictures, music, and news reporting-contributed $1.29 trillion to U.S. gross domestic product and directly employed 6.6 million people in 2019. Given the economic and cultural significance of copyright- intensive industries, Congress frequently considers amendments to the Copyright Act, the federal law governing the U.S. copyright system. This In Focus provides an overview of copyright law and highlights areas of current and potential congressional interest. Copyright Overview Types of Copyrightable Works Copyright protection is available for many different types of creative works, including: * literary works (e.g., books and computer code); * musical works; * dramatic works; * choreographic works; * pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works (e.g., fine art and photography); * audiovisual works (e.g., movies and television); * sound recordings; and * architectural works. In all cases, copyright protection applies only to a work's creative expression. It does not extend to the ideas, processes, systems, discoveries, or methods of operation that may be described in the work. For example, while copyright might prevent others from copying the words in a book verbatim, another person could still explain the idea communicated by the book using different words. Originality and Fixation Requirements To be copyrightable, a work must be original and fixed in some tangible form. To be original, a work must be independently created (i.e., not copied from another person) and have at least a minimal degree of creativity. For example, neither an unoriginal collection of facts (such as an ordinary telephone number directory) nor a work copied entirely from a previous work is copyrightable. A work must also be fixed in a tangible medium of expression to be copyrightable. This means that a work has to be recorded in some way so that it can be later perceived, communicated, or reproduced. For instance, a live musical performance is not fixed unless someone records it, such as by taking a video of the performance on a smartphone or by writing it down in musical notation. The Copyright Registration Process An original work is copyrighted once it is created and fixed. Unlike some other forms of intellectual property (e.g., patents), the author need not apply with the federal government to obtain a copyright. Copyright holders may, however, choose to register their copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office. Registration yields several benefits; for example, American copyright holders must register their work before they can sue for copyright infringement in federal court. copyright Ownership and Transfer Ownership of a copyright vests initially with the author(s) of a work. In the case of works made for hire (such as creative works created by employees as part of their job), the person or corporation for whom the work was made is treated as the author. Ownership of a copyright is often transferred by contract in whole or part. For example, musical recording artists often assign their copyrights to record companies in exchange for compensation. Exclusive Rights of Copyright Owners Copyright holders generally have the exclusive right to reproduce the work, publicly perform and display it, distribute it, and prepare derivative works from it. (Derivative works include adaptations of a work, such as a foreign-language translation, sequel, or dramatization.) A person who takes one of these actions without the copyright holder's permission is said to infringe the copyright. Copyright infringement occurs only if the alleged infringer actually copied from the earlier work, so there is no liability if the accused work was created independently. In addition, an accused work will infringe an earlier work only if the two works are substantially similar, that is, sufficiently alike in their copyrightable elements. For most works created today, the copyright does not expire until 70 years after the death of the work's author.

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