In the short time I’ve been part of the U.S. Copyright Office, I’ve had several conversations that follow this same general scenario: “You work for the Copyright Office? Isn’t that where every copyright in America is registered? Should I go there with my idea that I want to protect? Will they take a family recipe?” […]
The following is a guest post by Robert J. Kasunic, Associate Register of Copyrights and director of Registration Policy & Practice. At the beginning of October, the Copyright Office updated our Registration Processing Times and FAQ, found on our registration portal, to reflect significant decreases in the time it takes us to review copyright registration […]
Learn more about the connection between Edgar Allan Poe and copyright at the Copyright Matters event “Quoth the Raven: Edgar Allan Poe & Derivative Works.” As we approach October, thoughts often turn to colorful foliage, cozy hoodies, and pumpkin spice everything. Some thoughts also drift toward the spooky season, bringing to mind scary stories and […]
Let’s talk about fees. Not everyone’s favorite topic, I’ll admit, but it’s something the Copyright Office could not operate without. Yesterday, the Copyright Office delivered our Fee Schedule and Analysis to Congress. Every three to five years, the Office engages in an in-depth study of our fees to determine whether to adjust them. To be […]
The following is a guest post by Mark Gray, attorney-advisor in the Office of the General Counsel. The deadline for the first wave of DMCA agent renewals is almost here. This post will explain what service providers need to know to maintain active agent registrations with the Copyright Office, and it will also answer some […]
Four adventurers join the U.S. Copyright Office on July 31 with presentations about their travels and their creativity.
Copyright issues were part of the Apollo 11 mission, which launched fifty years ago this year, and continue to be relevant today.
If asked, many of us would easily be able to identify our favorite song or tune, and often to even quote verbatim (e.g., sing embarrassingly off-key) the actual bridge, melody, or lyrics that made that song so special. Whether it is the way a song made us laugh or reflected our innermost desires and fears, […]
The following is a guest blog post by Ashley Tucker, a copyright registration specialist for the Visual Arts Division. For a deeper dive into the Office’s recent efforts to successfully improve registration pendency times, as well as a historical look at registration, see the Office’s response to Congressional letters received on March 14 and April […]
Not only is the Library of Congress celebrating the 200th anniversary of Walt Whitman’s birth all month, but May is also the anniversary of Leaves of Grass, one of Whitman’s best-known works. Walter Whitman (as he called himself then) registered his copyright for the first edition of Leaves of Grass on May 15, 1855, in […]