Quote:
Originally Posted by pdurrant
It's not possible to transfer copyright so that the copyright length changes. It is possible to transfer all rights to do with the copyright.
It's also possible to have a contract so that the copyright in newly created things belongs to another entity than the creator from the start - most employment contacts have this, so that intellectual property created by an employee belongs to the company employing them.
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If the work is for hire, then the author doesn't own the copyright. Quite a few franchise books are works for hire. Copyright is a legal construct between the author and the government. Just look at the inside cover of a book and see who is listed as the copyright holder. The copyright holder can enter into a contract that gives exclusive license to someone else, but the author is still the copyright holder. Copyright law and contract law are two different legal traditions and different rules apply.
For example, at one time in the US, the author had to do certain things to obtain the copyright and to extend the copyright period. If he didn't, then the work went into public domain, regardless of what the contract said. The contract holder could not extend the copyright, only the copyright holder could.
The difference isn't obvious, but it's a difference.