Warning: what you're about to read is not legal advice. It's simply a summary of public domain law and some tips that business owners can use. Please do not confuse it with legal advice.
Lots of people don't know what work being in the public domain means. In general, works that can be described as being in the public domain are those that have expired copyright dates and are eligible to be copyrighted. Because of these factors, the public has a right to them.
There are some advantages of using works that are in the public domain. The top two advantages are that there is no permission to chase and no fees to be charged. Another is that you could freely quote public domain works and uses them to create "derivative works."
Business owners may like all of the above things.
But you really have to be careful when attempting to use works in the public domain.
For instance, revisions and translations of a work in a public domain may be fully protected under copyright laws. Likewise, countries other than the United States may have public domain laws that differ greatly from American ones. Don't be surprised to find that works considered to be public domain in the United States are protected in other countries.
Is it public domain or not?
Here are some general guidelines to help you determine if the work is up for grabs
Ask yourself this:
- Can it be described as an idea or fact?
- Did it come from the U.S. government? Was the writer a government employee?
- Is it a theory, principle, law of science or a formula for math
- Is it a research method, educational process or a way to uncover statistics
- Is the works a proper name, symbol, sign, number, word, punctuation or a rule of language
- Has the works failed to renew its copyright
- Has it exceed its expiration date?
If you can answer "yes" to any of these questions, then the work is in the public domain.
There's more.
Works created before 1923 are in the public domain.
But works created after 1923 are a little more difficult to categorize. Here are some rules that can help you quickly determine if what you have is something that you can use.
Works published without a notice during between 1923 and March 1, 1989 is in the public domain.
Works published without a notice and registration between 1978 and March 1, 1989 are in the public domain.
Works published between 1923 and 1963 that haven't had their copyright renewed are in the public domain.
Keep in mind that all works, whether published or unpublished, after March 1, 1989 cannot be in the public domain under any circumstances. They're protected by copyright as long as 70 years after the author has expired.
Now that I've given you a little primer about public domain law, I suggest you use it. Public domain works are out there, waiting to help your business along its path to success!
Lots of people don't know what work being in the public domain means. In general, works that can be described as being in the public domain are those that have expired copyright dates and are eligible to be copyrighted. Because of these factors, the public has a right to them.
There are some advantages of using works that are in the public domain. The top two advantages are that there is no permission to chase and no fees to be charged. Another is that you could freely quote public domain works and uses them to create "derivative works."
Business owners may like all of the above things.
But you really have to be careful when attempting to use works in the public domain.
For instance, revisions and translations of a work in a public domain may be fully protected under copyright laws. Likewise, countries other than the United States may have public domain laws that differ greatly from American ones. Don't be surprised to find that works considered to be public domain in the United States are protected in other countries.
Is it public domain or not?
Here are some general guidelines to help you determine if the work is up for grabs
Ask yourself this:
- Can it be described as an idea or fact?
- Did it come from the U.S. government? Was the writer a government employee?
- Is it a theory, principle, law of science or a formula for math
- Is it a research method, educational process or a way to uncover statistics
- Is the works a proper name, symbol, sign, number, word, punctuation or a rule of language
- Has the works failed to renew its copyright
- Has it exceed its expiration date?
If you can answer "yes" to any of these questions, then the work is in the public domain.
There's more.
Works created before 1923 are in the public domain.
But works created after 1923 are a little more difficult to categorize. Here are some rules that can help you quickly determine if what you have is something that you can use.
Works published without a notice during between 1923 and March 1, 1989 is in the public domain.
Works published without a notice and registration between 1978 and March 1, 1989 are in the public domain.
Works published between 1923 and 1963 that haven't had their copyright renewed are in the public domain.
Keep in mind that all works, whether published or unpublished, after March 1, 1989 cannot be in the public domain under any circumstances. They're protected by copyright as long as 70 years after the author has expired.
Now that I've given you a little primer about public domain law, I suggest you use it. Public domain works are out there, waiting to help your business along its path to success!
About the Author:
Ready to get started with marketing in the public domain? Claim your free lifetime access to hard-to-find public domain eBooks at PLRWholesaler.com. Plus, you'll receive instant access to a huge library of private label products, articles and software PLUS over 100 training videos, so you can start making money with PLR right away.
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