What is copyright?

United States copyright law (Title 17 of the United States Code) grants exclusive rights and protections to copyright holders while providing exemptions for certain uses of copyrighted works. 

Goals of copyright

Copyright law sets out to promote progress by securing time-limited exclusive rights for creators (paraphrased from Article 1, Section 8, Clause 8 or the US Constitution).

Copyrighted materials

Copyright law protects original, creatives works. This covers a wide swath of expressions, extending over literary and artistic works. Copyright protects: literary works, music, art, film, collections, databases, software, and more. In the U.S., works must be in a fixed form to by copyrighted. ("Fixed form" means the creative work is tangible.) A work does not need to the copyright symbol (©) to be protected.

Facts, ideas, names, slogans, titles, concepts, and systems cannot be copyrighted (e.g., the list of ingredients in a recipe).

Exclusive rights of creators / copyright holders

In the U.S., copyright is set for a fixed amount of time. During its duration, the copyright holder is entitled to six exclusive rights:

1. The right to reproduce
2. The right to create derivative works (e.g., adapting a novel into a screenplay)
3. The right to distribute copies or transfer ownership
4. The right to perform the work publicly
5. The right to display the work publicly
6. The right to perform the work publicly via digital audio transmission (if sound recording)