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Copyright 101: A short introduction to Copyright

"Copyright" is the right to control some uses of a creative work, be it a book, movie, song, or web design. While the specifics vary from country to country, the essence is the same: copyright holders, whether authors, their heirs, or their publishers, have some rights to control how the work is used.

"Copyright infringement" means exercising one of the copyright holder's exclusive rights without permission. These exclusive rights include copying (or "reproducing") the work, distributing it, publicly performing or displaying it, and making "derivative works" such as abridgments or translations. For instance, making a thousand copies of a video and selling them would almost certainly infringe the copyright holder's rights to reproduce and distribute the work. Under certain circumstances, people who contribute to or are responsible for the infringements may also be held liable — this is called secondary or derivative liability.

In the U.S., the copyright law is found in Title 17 of the United States Code. The law makes clear that copyright applies only to "original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression". Separate sections of the law apply to the copyrights of sound recordings, architectural drawings, and many other types of expression. It isn't necessary to register a work with the U.S. Copyright Office, or to place a © notice on it, for the work to have copyright protection.

Once a work is "fixed" in a "tangible medium of expression", the copyright holder can exercise her "exclusive rights" until the copyright term expires. Although the Copyright Clause of the Constitution specifies that the copyright is to last for only "limited times", copyright terms are now very long — life of the author plus seventy years, or a flat 95 years for most copyrights held by corporations. After that, the work enters the public domain.

Authors or creators can assign some or all of their "exclusive rights" to others (publishers and record companies, for example). Works created in the course of employment are works for hire, and the employer is considered the natural author, even if the employer is a business entity.

While copyright holders have the exclusive rights to authorize reproduction, distribution, and so on, the public also has certain rights to use the works. The public's rights include fair use; the first sale doctrine; and other defenses that apply in particular situations, such as when libraries make copies for research purposes.Learn More:

• The "Exclusive Rights" Authorized by Copyright: Reproduction, Distribution, Public Display and Performance; Making "Derivative Works"
• What Can Happen When Someone Is Sued for Copyright Infringement
• What Can, and Can't, Be Copyrighted: Copyrightable Subject Matter
• How Long Copyright Lasts, and What Is the Public Domain
• Copyright Holders, Licensing & Permissions
• Fair Use of Copyrighted Works
• The First Sale Doctrine: Consumers' Rights Over the Copies They Buy