Copyright Myths
The following are ten commonly believed myths about copyright issues and laws. All of these are just that: Myths. See how many you believe.
- If I find something on the Internet, it is OK for me to use it.
- Email content is not protected by copyright.
- Blog content is not protected by copyright.
- I can legally copy textual content from another website.
- I can upload photos of celebrities, animated characters, etc to my website.
- It’s OK to download music to my PC from sources like Limewire or Napster, or to rip songs from CD’s, and then upload them to my website and use.
- Copyrighted works must have a copyright symbol, date, and name attached to it in order for copyright protection to be in effect.
- It’s OK to use copyrighted content or images without permission, as long as I give the copyright owner full credit on my website.
- If I modify or adapt an original work, it is now mine and it’s OK for me to use it on my site.
- I can’t be sued for copyright infringement if I didn’t know or understand the copyright laws.
Now here are some FACTS:
- Just because something is on the Internet does NOT mean it’s in the public domain and free of copyright protection. To be in the public domain a work must have been created before 1923. Another rule of thumb for works after 1978 is the life of the work’s author, plus 70 years. But since copyrighted works are protected according to the laws in effect when the works were created, then the protection can change.
- All content found on websites, in emails and blogs, in Usenet posts etc is protected by copyright laws. Whether the content is photos, songs, or just plain text, unless you have obtained express permission to use it on your site, then it is illegal to do so.
- Intellectual property is protected by copyright the moment any part of it has been created and fixed in a tangible form. No registration is necessary or required for a work to be protected by copyright. Registered work is beneficial should an issue of copyright infringement arise, but it is not necessary to begin copyright protection under the law.
- If you are going to use someone else’s copyrighted work on your website, you MUST obtain permission to do so–unless the work expressly states that it can be reprinted without permission. This applies to ANY content you want to use: text, photos, music, etc.
- Modifying an original work does not negate the copyright of the work’s original author. A modification or adaptation will generally be called a derivative work, but these works are copyright protected as well.
- You CAN be sued for copyright infringement, and ignorance of the laws will NOT protect you from them. And being that this would be a Civil case, rather than a Criminal one, you have far fewer rights than a criminal defendant would. Someone suing you for copyright infringements needs to prove only two things: ownership of the original work, and copying or misuse by the defendant. And these cases are generally decided upon by a judge, rather than a jury, so the cases move fairly quickly through the court system. And just how much can you be sued for? In the case of photographic copyright infringement, penalties of up to $150,000 per photo are permitted. And if you lose, you’ll be stuck with the plaintiff’s legal fees as well.
If you want to learn more about Copyright, visit the US Copyright Office via the links below.
How to Investigate Copyright Status
You may also benefit from learning more about patents and trade marks too:
