Description

This article is from the Songwriting FAQ, by Greg Skinner gds@best.com.

17. Should I register my material with a copyright office before sending it to a publisher, posting it to the net, etc? (Songwriting)

If you are at all concerned about protecting your material and getting
compensated for it, you should copyright your material before making it
available to the public. You will get the maximum protection
available to you under the law if you register your material with the
copyright office for the country you live in. If someone tries to use
your material without your permission, you can bring charges against
them.

Some publishers do not accept uncopyrighted material. They could get
in legal trouble if somehow your uncopyrighted song is released.

To obtain US copyright forms, write the Copyright Office, Library of
Congress, Washington, D.C. 20559 or call the Forms Hotline at
+1 202-707-9100. This number operates 24 hours a day and allows you to
leave a recorded request for forms you need.

Copyright information can be obtained via the WWW. There is
discussion of national and international copyright issues.

http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/
(Library of Congress Copyright homepage)

gopher://hamilton1.house.gov:70/11d%3a/uscode/title17
(Text of United States Code Title 17 (Copyright))

gopher://marvel.loc.gov/11/copyright
(The US Copyright Office)

http://www.ntt.jp/japan/misc/copyright.html
(Copyright Law in Japan. Requires a browser capable of displaying the
Japanese character set.)

http://www.benedict.com/
(The Copyright WebSite. Practical information on copyright.)

http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/Copyright-FAQ/top.html
(Copyright information maintained at Ohio State University)

http://avalon.caltech.edu/~thanne/law.html
(A collection of legal resources on the WWW)

http://www.panix.com/~bizy/c.html
(Derek Sivers' copyright resource page.)

Continue to:

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