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Copyright is automatic in any original creative expression fixed in a tangible medium. The author or artist owns copyright as soon as it's recorded. No notice has been required since 1989 in order to comply with the Berne Convention, an international copyright treaty, but notice must have a date, copyright symbol (or word), and the name of the owner/author. In order to sue for copyright infringement, you have to have your work registered with the U.S. Copyright office. This can be done online. The requirements are just that it's an original work in a fixed medium. Because it must be original, a few words will not qualify for copyright--but they may be protected for business use by trademark. Copyright applications are not generally examined closely--originality would be tested in an infringement lawsuit. Trademark is completely different. There are state and federal trademarks, and unlike copyright, they last forever. Unlike copyright, others are allowed to use your trademarks, just not for the purpose of promoting their goods. It's basically a mechanism so that consumers can be assured that the source of trademarked goods is the same over time--so that competitors cannot swoop in and start selling under the same name. It's more like unfair competition law, although it's sometimes also called intellectual property.

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by Frank

2 months ago

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