Title 17, United States Code:
- Copyright is a form of protection provided by US law to the authors of original intellectual works. This includes literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and other creative works.
- Copyright owners have exclusive rights to authorize reproduction of their work, sale or distribution or their work, and public display or performance of their work.
- According to the Berne Convention, Copyright is obtained merely by putting a creative work in a tangible form. An author does not need to obtain official federal copyright to own the rights to their work.
The following are examples of copyrightable works:
- Literary works
- Musical works, including lyrics
- Dramatic works, including musical accompaniment
- Visual arts, both two and three dimensional works
- Audiovisual works, including motion pictures
- Sound recordings
- Architectural works, including drawings and plans
The following are examples of types of creative works that are NOT protected by copyright:
- Works not fixed in a tangible form (ex. improvisational performances that have not been recorded)
- Titles, short phrases, slogans (may be protected under trademark law)
- Ideas and concepts
- Works consisting of information that is common property (ex. data)
- Works in the Public Domain