Free Info for Songwriters
and Artists
Copyright your work!
Why copyright registration is important.
The U.S. Copyright law recognizes ownership
of copyright “from the moment of creation”. This means that the minute you
think up a song, poem, play, etc. or put pen to paper, or nowadays, create a
file on your computer, the copyright of your music or any other creative
endeavor belongs to you.
The problems begin in the event that you have
to prove ownership of the copyright. The only valid way to do this is to have
your work registered at the U.S. Copyright office. You don’t want to find
yourself in court up against a savvy team of corporate lawyers with only a
handwritten piece of paper. A copyright registration document is indisputable.
The date of registration is your proof of ownership.
Myth # 1
“Can’t I just mail my work to
myself and leave the envelope unopened?”
All this proves is that you mailed something
to yourself. It does not prove creation or ownership. It won’t stand up
in court against a really good legal team. It could be disputed that you stole
the said work and mailed it to yourself.
Myth #2
“Doesn’t publication or performance of a work offer the same protection as a legal copyright?”
Again, this does not prove ownership of the
work nor does it verify the date of creation. It only proves date of
publication or performance with a vague, at best, idea of when the work was
created.
Myth #3
“Doesn’t a copyright notice on
a CD serve as legal proof of ownership?”
The copyright notice on a recorded work only
serves as notice of intent to copyright that particular recording. In other
words, if Artist A writes and records a song and copyrights that recording,
that only serves notice that the recording or any portion of that recording
should not be used without permission. It does not prevent Artist B from
recording and selling another version of that same song.
A recording is not automatically registered by
placing a copyright notice on the recording. A recording must be registered
with the U.S. Copyright office to protect it from unauthorized use by anyone,
including movies, television, commercial endeavors, universities…the list goes
on and on.
For complete information on how to copyright your music go to http://www.copyright.gov/ and learn more about your rights as a composer. It is your best defense against theft of your music or other intellectual properties.
Are you a published songwriter? Is someone looking out for you? How do you know if you are getting paid for sales or airplay? Performing rights organizations like ASCAP, BMI and SESAC all work to protect you from the un-authorized use of your music.
Each of these
companies represents a galaxy of artists, composers, producers and others in
the music industry. Membership in these organizations is inexpensive (as little
as $10.00 U.S.) but priceless for the information you can attain and the
services they provide.