Table of Contents
GENERAL INFORMATION
This circular gives information about copyright registration of online works
made available over a communications network such as the Internet. This information
applies also to works accessed via network (World Wide Web sites and homepages,
FTP sites, Gopher sites) and files and documents transmitted and/or downloaded
via network.
Copyright protects original authorship fixed in tangible form. 17 U.S.C.
sec. 102(a). For works transmitted online, the copyrightable authorship may
consist of text, artwork, music, audiovisual material (including any sounds),
sound recordings, etc. Copyright does NOT protect ideas, procedures,
systems, or methods of operation. 17 U.S.C. sec. 102(b).
Under U.S. law, copyright protection subsists from the time the work is fixed.
Copyright registration is not mandatory, but it has important benefits. For
general information about copyright, request Circular
1, “Copyright Basics.” See “For Further Information”
on page 4 on how to obtain circulars and other information.
This circular does NOT apply
to electronic registration or electronic deposit of digital works through
CORDS (the Copyright Office Electronic Registration, Recordation and Deposit
System), which is currently under development. For more information about
CORDS, please request SL-11, “CORDS—Copyright Office Electronic
Registration, Recordation and Deposit System” or consult the Copyright
Office Website at www.copyright.gov
Until CORDS is operational, online works must be registered under the
current system using identifying material as the deposit. See the section
that follows on “The Deposit.” |
What the registration of an online work covers
For all online works other than computer programs and databases, the registration
will extend only to the copyrightable content of the work as received in
the Copyright Office and identified as the subject of the claim. The application
for registration should exclude any material that has been previously registered
or published or that is in the public domain. For published works, the registration
should be limited to the content of the work asserted to be published on
the date given on the application.
NOTE: For online
computer programs and databases, the registration will extend to the entire
copyrightable content of the work owned by the claimant, even though the
entire content is not required in the identifying material deposited. |
Revisions and updates
Many works transmitted online are revised or updated frequently. For individual
works, however, there is no blanket registration available to cover revisions
published on multiple dates. A revised version for each daily revision may
be registered separately, provided the revisions constitute copyrightable
authorship. A separate application and $30* filing fee
would be required for each separately published update. See the filing fee
information on page 4.
Databases
In some cases, a frequently updated online work may constitute an automated
database. A group of updates, published or unpublished, to a database, covering
up to a 3-month period within the same calendar year, may be combined in a
single registration. For more information about registering databases, request
Circular 65, “Copyright Registration for Automated
Databases.” All updates from a 3-month period may be registered with
a single application and $30* filing fee.
Serials and newsletters
Group registration (a single registration covering multiple issues published
on different dates) is available for serials (published weekly or less
often) and daily newsletters (published more often than weekly),
including those published online.The requirements vary, depending on the type
of work. For more information about registering serials, request Circular
62, “Copyright Registration for Serials on Form SE”; for daily
newsletters, request Circular 62a, “Group Registration of Daily Newspapers
and Newsletters.” For group registration of serials and daily newspapers
and newsletters, the filing fee is $15* per issue with
a minimum fee of $45.
NOTE: Group registration for serials is available
only if the claim is in a “collective work.” Thus, group registration
is NOT available for electronic journals published one article at a time
because such works are not collective works. |
HOW TO REGISTER YOUR WORK
To register a work transmitted online, send the following three items together
in the same envelope or package to:
Library of Congress
Copyright Office
101 Independence Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
1. A properly completed and signed application form
2. Appropriate deposit material
3. A nonrefundable filing fee for each application in the form of a check
or money order payable to Register of Copyrights
Detailed information on each of these is given below.
THE APPLICATION
What Form to Use
Use the form that corresponds to the type of authorship being registered,
for example:
Form TX—literary material, including computer programs and databases
Form VA—pictorial and graphic works, including cartographic material
Form PA—audiovisual material, including any sounds, music, or lyrics
Form SR—sound recording, excluding sounds accompanying an audiovisual
work
Form SE—a single issue of a serial
Form SE/GROUP—a group of issues of a serial, including daily newsletters
Form GR/CP—a group of contributions to a periodical. (This form must
be used in conjunction with Form TX, PA, or VA.)
If the work contains more than one type of authorship, use the form that
corresponds to the predominant material.
The various classes (TX, PA, VA, SR) are for administrative purposes only.
A work may be registered on any form. Exceptions: A sound recording (sounds
that do not accompany a series of images) must be registered on Form
SR. Form SE/GROUP may be used only for group registration of serials. For
more information, see Circular 56, “Copyright for Sound Recordings.”
How to complete the form
In general, complete the form as explained in the instructions and in applicable
Copyright Office circulars. Information specific to online works is given
in more detail below.
Space 2: How to describe the Nature of Authorship
In Space 2 of the application, give a brief statement describing the original
authorship being registered. Use terms that clearly refer to copyrightable
authorship. Examples are “text,” “music,” “artwork,”
“photographs,” “audiovisual material” (including any sounds),
“sound recording” (if the sounds do not accompany a series of images),
and “computer program.”
Do NOT give statements that refer to elements that may not be protected
by copyright, that may be ambiguous, or that do not clearly reflect copyrightable
authorship. For example, do NOT use the terms “user interface,”“format,”
“layout,” “design,” “lettering,” “concept,”
or “game play.”
Space 3: Determining if your work is published or unpublished
The definition of “publication” in the U.S. copyright law does
not specifically address online transmission. As has been the long-standing
practice, the Copyright Office asks the applicant, who knows the facts surrounding
distribution of copies of a work, to determine whether the work is published
or not.
In the current copyright law, “publication” is defined as
“... the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the public
by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending. The
offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for purposes
of further distribution, public performance, or public display, constitutes
publication. A public performance or display of a work does not of itself
constitute publication.” 17 U.S.C. sec. 101.
Published works: If you determine that your work is published, give
the complete date and nation of first publication in Space 3b of the application.
For a revised version, the publication date should be the date the revised
version was first published, not the date the original version first appeared
online. For registration purposes, give a single nation of first publication,
which may be the nation from which the work is uploaded.
NOTE: If the same work is published
both online and by the distribution of physical copies and these events
occur on different dates, the publication date should refer to whichever
occurred first. For what to deposit in this case, see the “Exception”
below. |
Unpublished works: If you determine that your work is unpublished,
leave Space 3b blank. Do NOT write“Internet,” “homepage,”
or any other term in this space.
THE DEPOSIT
All works transmitted online excluding computer programs, databases, and
works fixed in CD-ROM format:
The deposit regulations of the Copyright Office do not specifically address
works transmitted online. Until the regulations are amended, and under the
authority granted the Copyright Office by 37 C.F.R. 202.20(c)(2)(viii), the
Office will require the deposit of one of the following:
Option 1: a computer disk (clearly labeled with the title and author)
containing the entire work and in addition, representative portions of the
authorship being registered in a format that can be examined by the Office
(printout, audiocassette, or videotape). If the work is short (e.g., five
pages of text or artwork, or 3 minutes of music, sounds, or audiovisual material),
deposit the entire work and confirm that it is complete. If the work is longer,
deposit five representative pages or 3 representative minutes. This identifying
material should include the title and author, and the copyright notice, if
any.
OR
Option 2: a reproduction of the entire work, regardless of
length. Send the format appropriate for the authorship being registered, for
example, a printout, audio cassette, or videotape. No computer disk is required.
Exception: If a work is published both online and by the distribution
of physical copies in any format, the requirement of the deposit regulations
for the copies applies, not the options for online works given above. For
example, if a work is published in the form of hardbound books and is also
transmitted online, the deposit requirement is two copies of the hardbound
book.
Computer programs, databases, and works fixed in CD-ROM format transmitted
online:
For computer programs, databases, and works fixed in CD-ROM format, the
specific provisions of Copyright Office deposit regulations apply to works
transmitted online. 37 C.F.R. 202.20(c)(vii) and 202.20(c)(xix). For further
information, request Circular 61, “Copyright Registration for Computer
Programs,” or Circular 65, “Copyright Registration for Automated
Databases.” For works fixed in CD-ROM format, a complete copy of the
CDROM package, including any operating software or instruction manual, is
required.
THE FILING FEE*
For a single work (Form TX, PA, VA, SR, or SE): $30*
per application
For a group of serials or newsletters (Form SE/ GROUP): $15*
per issue ($45* minimum)
For a group of updates to a database, covering up to a 3-month period (Form
TX): $30* per application
*NOTE:
Copyright Office fees are subject to change. For current fees, please check
the Copyright Office website at www.copyright.gov,
write the Copyright Office, or call (202) 707-3000. |
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Information via the Internet: Circulars, announcements, regulations,
other related materials, and all copyright application forms are available
from the Copyright Office at www.copyright.gov
Information by telephone: If you have specific questions about registering
a work transmitted online and want to speak with a copyright examiner, please
call the Literary Section of the Examining Division at (202) 707-8250.
For general information about copyright, call the Public Information Office
at (202) 707-3000. The TTY number is (202) 707-6737. Information specialists
are on duty in the Public Information Office from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.,
eastern time, Monday through Friday, except federal holidays. Recorded information
is available 24 hours a day. Or, if you know which application forms and
circulars you want, request them from the Forms and Publications Hotline
at (202)
707-9100 24 hours a day. Leave a recorded message.
Information by regular mail: Write to:
Library of Congress
Copyright Office
Public Information Office, LM-401
101 Independence Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
For more about how to obtain information online and via fax, request SL-10,
“Get It Quick Over the Net.”
Revised December 2004
This electronic version has been altered slightly from the original printed
text for presentation on the World Wide Web. For a copy of the original
circular, consult the PDF
version or write to Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue S.E., Washington,
D.C. 20559-6000.