Quote:
Originally Posted by ratinox
Kinda but not. Prior to the passing of the Copyright Act of 1976, copyright in the US required formal, costly registration. Registration lasted 28 years and could be renewed once for an additional 28 years for a total of 56 years. This caused lots of problems as works that were copyrighted in one nation were considered public domain in others.
The Copyright Act brought the US in line with the rest of the world in terms of duration (life + 50 years). This is, IMO, the lesser of the two big changes. The greater of the two is that copyright is inherent in any creative work as soon as it is given tangible form. This is huge. It means that anyone and everyone can be a creator and have their works protected by copyright law, not just those fortunate enough to be wealthy or have wealthy patrons.
Which brings me to the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998, aka the Sonny Bono Act, aka the Mickey Mouse Protection Act, which froze the advancement date for works automatically entering the public domain in the US. And this in turn brings me to secret trade treaties like the TPP carrying DMCA-style and copyright term extension provisions which the US, notably backed by the MPAA, has been strong-arming other nations into signing.
France may have started it but Big Content players in the US have been pushing it further every chance they get.
|
Well, the US probably isn't going to sign the TPP.
Prior to 1978, in the US, you did have to register a copyright, but that was very simple and didn't cost a dime. You just had to put a copyright notice on it when you published it. That's it. You may be confusing the registration with renewal requirements.
I won't deny that US media companies are the driving force behind the US signing the Berne treaty and extending the copyright term, though the US media companies tend to be more focused on music and movies than books.