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Archive: 2018 (17 Posts)

The National Film Registry’s Copyright Connection

Posted by: Alison Hall

Today, the Library of Congress and the National Film Preservation Board announced this year’s list of films added to the National Film Registry. Many favorite films are already part of the Registry, including Star Wars, The Muppet Movie, Airplane!, This Is Spinal Tap, The Breakfast Club, Top Gun, and The Princess Bride. This year’s additions do …

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The Orrin G. Hatch-Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act

Posted by: George Thuronyi

 The following is a guest post by Regan A. Smith, General Counsel and Associate Register of Copyrights. “When modes of music change, the fundamental laws of the state always change with them.” Plato, the Republic Book IV (Jowett tr.) Following unanimous votes in the House of Representatives and the Senate, today the President signed the …

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The Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act

Posted by: Karyn A. Temple

Today is an exciting day for copyright law. The president has signed the Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act, and the United States will soon formally deposit instruments to join this treaty. Five years ago, on June 27, 2013, the international copyright community adopted the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are …

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Virtual Card Catalog Phase II

Posted by: George Thuronyi

The following is a guest post by Tracie Coleman, Information Section head of the Licensing Division. I began my career in the U.S. Copyright Office in 1991. For ten years, I worked as a bibliographer in the Copyright Public Records Reading Room (CPRRR). When responding to public requests for copyright information, I was responsible for …

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The International Copyright Institute (ICI) 2018 – Cross Border Issues

Posted by: George Thuronyi

The following is a guest post by Zhao Zhao, summer law clerk in the Office of Policy and International Affairs The U.S. Copyright Office and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) successfully hosted the 2018 International Copyright Institute (ICI) from June 4–8, 2018, in Washington, D.C. The Copyright Office’s Office of Policy & International Affairs …

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Copyright and a Free Press

Posted by: George Thuronyi

The following is a guest post by Brad Greenberg, counsel for policy and international affairs. This month marks the hundredth anniversary of oral arguments in the seminal U.S. Supreme Court case of International News Service v. Associated Press (1918), which established the federal common law doctrine of “hot news” misappropriation. This anniversary comes at a …

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Copyright Office Proposes New Fee Model

Posted by: Karyn A. Temple

Today, the Copyright Office announces a new proposed fee schedule. The Office charges fees for a variety of public services, such as filing applications for registration, recording documents, and researching and copying records. Every three to five years, we review the costs of services and assess new fees. Typically, the Office does not charge the …