When a business or an individual has an idea that they want to protect from being used by others without their permission, it is best to seek legal protection, which is called intellectual property. Furthermore, establishing intellectual property rights can help to fuel the economy and stimulate further innovation. There are four main types of intellectual property:
Trademarks: any kind of slogan, wording, or logo that represents a brand.
Trade Secrets: specific, private information that is important to a business because it gives the business a competitive advantage in its marketplace.
Patents: limited-duration protection that can be used to protect inventions or discoveries.
Copyrights: a way to protect the authorship of a piece of written work. Written work can include a novel, poetry, a piece of music, or art. As a general rule, for works created after January 1, 1978, copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years.
The Patent and Copyright Clause of the US Constitution states that Congress shall have the power to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries. This copyright law was created with the official purpose of “stimulating artistic creativity for the general public good,” but there are more reasons for its creation.
Copyright Protection
It incentivizes originality, even though artists can’t copy the work of others, this does not stop them from being motivated by such work. Copyright encourages artists to create their own work, ultimately leading to not only a higher variety of music but also a robust “public domain” over time.
It also prevents other people from passing another’s work as their own, if a creator's work is used by another without permission, the author can request a court injunction that commands the infringing party to cease and desist right away regarding publication or performance of the work in question.
It incentivizes originality, even though artists can’t copy the work of others, this does not stop them from being motivated by such work. Copyright encourages artists to create their own work, ultimately leading to not only a higher variety of music but also a robust “public domain” over time.
What is the Public Domain?
This term refers to creative materials that are not protected by intellectual property laws, anyone can use a public domain work without obtaining permission, but no one can ever own it. The creation of this collection solves the potential stagnation in creativity caused by the same limitations created by copyright.
In addition to this, a public domain gives its users the opportunity to learn from the past, serving as an educational tool for all generations. A public domain is an extremely valuable resource that will only grow over time, becoming a huge database of art and science.
Nowadays, this huge database contains works like:
Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, this work is under the public domain in its country of origin and others where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 70 years, in addition to this, it was also registered with the US copyright office before January 1, 1926. Its release has allowed this wonderful piece to be featured in famous works of art, such as the movie "V for Vendetta".
The Starry Night, one of Van Gogh’s most famous pieces is in the public domain, but with some limitations, hand-painted reproductions in oil on canvas by Van Gogh Studio are 100% legal but if you are including the painting in something that you are going to commercialize, then you will need to ensure that the painting has sufficiently new content in it, in order not to get in trouble.
More recent (and better-known works are still protected by copyright some way or another, such as:
“All Along The Watchtower”, originally written and composed by Bob Dylan. It has been subsequently performed and “covered” by several artists, including Jimi Hendrix. In this situation, the copyright in the underlying musical composition (the lyrics and musical arrangement) is owned by Bob Dylan (or his Publishing Company), so Hendrix needed a mechanical license in order to commercialize his cover version. And the copyright of this particular sound recording, such as the Jimi Hendrix version of this track, is owned by Jimi Hendrix (or his record label).
Star Wars: one of the most famous and profitable franchises of the recent decades is the one conceived in a faraway galaxy, a long, long time ago. George Lucas also retained all merchandising and sequels rights, a decision that would make him a multi-billionaire, with a personal net worth of $5.4 billion. That is also one of the main reasons the Star Wars prequels existed and why they introduced so many visually appealing characters, with the purpose of selling more movie tickets and a huge variety of toys.
Therefore, if you are a content creator, artist, writer, songwriter, inventor, or any person who creates ideas or new concepts, to have your work protected from others is a blessing. Billions of dollars have been lost in the entertainment industry (especially the music industry) due to infringements and poor intellectual property management. Hopefully, this small article will augment your knowledge, and help you have a much more comfortable position when understanding how to protect your work and receive compensation from it!
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