Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of “original works of authorship” including, but not limited to:
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Literary works
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Dramatic works
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Musical works
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Artistic works
The 1976 Copyright Act generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to:
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Reproduce the copyrighted work,
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Prepare derivative works,
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Distribute copies of the copyrighted work,
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Perform the copyrighted work publicly, and
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Display the copyrighted work publicly.
The copyright protects the form of expression rather than the subject matter of the writing. For example, a description of a device could be copyrighted, but this would only prevent someone else from copying the description; it would not prevent others from making or using the device or writing a description of their own. Copyrights are registered by the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress.
If you have any type of original works that you would like to protect or if you feel that your original form of expression has been infringed upon, please contact the Law Office of Daniel A. Bonneville. |