.
Basic Introduction
to Federal Copyright
Law
Copyright law falls
largely, and often
entirely, within the
purview of federal
law.
Consequently, the
term “copyright”
generally refers to
the statutorily
created federal
copyright, governed
by the federal
copyright statute
(Title 17 of the
U.S. Code).
Creation of a
Copyright
While one may
register a copyright
with the U.S.
Copyright Office,
federal copyrights
actually attach
automatically to a
work of art, a text,
or any other
creative work.
Once the work is
“fixed” in a
particular medium,
the copyright
attaches to it.
It protects the
creator, and affords
him/her the rights
of a copyright
holder, whether the
holder takes any
action to register
the copyright or
not.
In order to be
fixed, a work must
simply be given some
tangible or
permanent form.
For instance, a song
is fixed once it is
recorded; a text is
copyrighted once it
is written.
While registering a
work with the
Copyright Office is
not necessary in
order to enjoy the
rights of a
copyright holder, it
does provide some
additional
protections against
infringement, and is
a fairly simple
process.
Copyright Holder
In most cases, a
copyright is held by
the creator of the
work. For
example, when an
artist creates a
sculpture, the
copyright
automatically
attaches to the
sculpture, with the
artist being the
holder of that
copyright.
However, if the
creator of the work
is under the employ
of another party,
and creates the work
in the course of
that employment,
then the work may be
considered to be a
“work for hire.”
In this situation,
the employer would
be the copyright
holder, enjoying all
the rights and
protections afforded
by the federal
copyright statute.
Rights Enjoyed by
Copyright Holder
Federal copyrights
confer upon their
holder a number of
rights and
protections.
These rights are
“bundled” together
under the copyright
umbrella, affording
the copyright holder
the ability to use,
sell, or transfer
the copyrighted
material in
virtually any manner
he/she wishes.
This bundle of
rights includes the
right to sell the
copyrighted
material, the right
to copy it, the
right to adapt it to
another medium, the
right to perform it,
and the right to
publish it.
This list is not
exhaustive, and
there are a host of
other rights
included within the
copyright bundle of
rights.
The rights conferred
upon a copyright
holder by federal
law are exclusive;
that is, they belong
solely to the
copyright holder.
However, the
copyright holder is
entitled to license
or assign those
rights to a third
party. The
copyright holder can
choose to license
all of the rights,
or only certain
specific rights.
In a license
agreement, the
rights are generally
licensed for a
defined period of
time, after which
the rights revert
back to the
copyright holder.
Grant of License
The license granted
in this type of
agreement spells out
the kinds of rights
that the licensee
will be able to
enjoy. As
noted above, a
federal copyright
bestows upon the
copyright holder a
bundle of different
rights. When
granting a license
to a licensee, it is
important to state
clearly which
particular rights
will be afforded to
the licensee.
Can the licensee
reproduce the
photograph(s)?
Can the
reproductions be
sold? Can the
photograph(s) be
incorporated into
another medium?
If so, what medium,
and how will it be
incorporated?
It is important to
be very clear as to
what rights the
licensee will enjoy,
thus clearly
establishing the
scope and boundaries
of the license.
Term
The term of the
license agreement,
and of the license
granted therein, is
generally for a
fixed period of
years, all rights
under the copyright
will revert back to
the licensor.
Payments
There are a number
of different ways of
calculating royalty
payments. In
some cases, a
royalty is a flat
amount paid based on
the number of units
sold by the
licensee. In
other cases, a
royalty is computed
as a percentage of
the sales revenue
received by the
licensee in the sale
of licensed
products.
The simplest method
of calculating the
royalty as a
percentage of total
sales is to select a
percentage of gross
sales revenues from
all sales of the
licensed products.
However, in many
instances, a
licensee will be
given the right to
deduct certain
expenses from gross
sales revenue before
a royalty percentage
is applied.
For example, will
the royalty be a
percentage of the
total gross sales
received by
licensee? Or
will certain
expenses be deducted
from gross sales
before the
percentage is taken,
i.e., the amount of
products returned by
customers, expenses
incurred in
advertising the
product, etc.
It is important in
this provision to
define clearly the
method by which
royalty payments
will be calculated.
Licensor’s
Representations and
Warranties
The most basic
representation that
a licensor will
generally be
expected to make is
that it has the
ownership interest
in the copyrighted
material that it
claims to have, and
that it therefore
has the right to
grant the license in
the first place.
The terms state that
the licensor will
guarantee these
basic
representations by
indemnifying the
licensee against any
damages that the
licensee might
suffer due to the
failure of the
licensor to live up
to those
representations.
Copyright Notice
If any materials
authored by PGH
Media are used
without a written
agreement or used
beyond the scope of
an active written
agreement, the
responsible party
will be billed a
$500.00 "Settlement
Fee" which must be
paid within ten (10)
business days or it
will be increased to
$2500.00 and PGH
Media will file suit
in the amount of
$5000.00 to cover
the "Settlement Fee"
and all legal fees.
.
