Copyright protection generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to do (and to authorize others to do) the following:

• To reproduce the work;
• To prepare derivative works based upon the work;
• To distribute copies of the work to the public;
• To perform the work publicly;
• To display the copyrighted work publicly, and;
• In the case of sound recordings, to perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

For works created (fixed in tangible form for the first time) on or after January 1, 1978, copyright protection endures for the term of the author’s life plus an additional 70 years after the author’s death.  In the case of “a joint work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire,” the term lasts for 70 years after the last surviving author’s death.  For works made for hire, and for anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author’s identity is revealed in Copyright Office records), the duration of copyright will be 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.

It is important to recognize that there are some limitations on copyright protection.  For example, under the doctrine of fair use, others may use portions of a copyrighted work for purposes such as reviews, news, commentary and education.  Also, some works are simply not eligible for copyright protection (e.g., names, common facts and ideas) and thus can be used by anyone.

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