Although many types of “creative” and “original” Works are deemed to have copyright protection from the instant that the Work is created and “fixed in any tangible place”, in order for the owner of this copyright to receive greater rights and increase or perhaps her ability to protect those rights the Work should be registered.
The United States Website Copyright Registration online in India Office is a division of the United States Department of Commerce. Registering with this office will greatly enhance the copyright owner’s ability to seek various types of damages if the copyright has been infringed upon by the outside party. One should seek legal advice before getting registering a copyrighted Work, as it should be determined whether the Job is copyrightable, i.e. the type of Work for which a registration can be purchased. Simply applying to register a copyright does not necessarily mean that the work in real question is copyrightable.
The duration of copyrights varies from what type of work is in question as well as when it originated or registered. A work that was created on or after January 1, 1978 is protected for this time it is created, usually for that author’s life plus 70 years when the author’s death. For “a joint work prepared by two or more authors who couldn’t work for hire,” the term created for 70 years pursuing the death of last surviving author.
The copyright term for works created and published or registered before January 1, 1978 will be the same as for any created on or after January 1, 1978, namely, life of the author plus 70 years. The 95/120-year terms for works for hire apply to pre January 1, 1978 to these works also. However, the term of copyright due to these works cannot expire before December 31, 2002. For works published on or before December 31, 2002, the term will not expire before December 31, 2047.
A “work made for hire” is one prepared by a staff within the scope of his or her employment or a work specially ordered or commissioned for several types of use use such as the contribution to a collective work, an element of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, a translation, a supplementary work, a compilation and even instructional text if the parties agree in writing instrument that job will be considered a work constantly hire.
The copyright term for works specifically for hire and anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author’s identity is revealed in Copyright Office records) is either 95 years via the date of publication or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever is shorter.
As with every area of Copyright and Intellectual Property Law, it is far better consult with your lawyer that specializes in this area. A number of law schools offer what is known as a Masters of Intellectual Property degree and the advice of an attorney with this level of scholarship can be essential from the minute a work is reached all the way through the enforcement or recovery any specific infringement.
This article is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be construed as legal advice and readers are motivated to consult a qualified attorney regarding these matters.