Copyright Laws?

[Lauren]

Hey all,
Didn't know where to ask this. What do you know about Copyright laws? I'm looking into making a Cafe Press store, but don't know what's free to use and what's not. I also want to write little booklets to get published through that site and want to either reproduce or use pieces of period periodicals. What's in public domain? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Nathan Flowers]

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Generally, stuff is free to use if the creator has given his/her expressed permission for others to use it.

In general, if you're going to be using old images to put on Cafepress stuff (with which you'd be selling somebody else's art for profit), you'd better make sure it's over 100 years old, just to be safe. If you absolutely KNOW that it's in public domain now, then you can get away with it, but you'd better be absolutely sure, as it can be a felony if you reproduce something currently under copyright.

http://www.copyright.gov/pr/pdomain.html
http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm

 

[Lauren]

Ok, thanks! I'll have to look into how to look up if the copyright is up. Or I'll tweak em A LOT

 

[16_sparrows]

If the image you are looking at using is copyrighted, you can use it only if you change it 75%. For example, if you re-draw it (or have someone do it for you) and change it significantly it then becomes the property of the artist.

 

[Lauren]

Wonderful! Thanks for the great information! I went onto a site that provided info on how to look into a copyright, and it seems some libraries carry a book that will tell when and if a copyright was renewed. I just want to make sure I don't do anything illegal. You guys have been wonderful!

 

[Slicksuit]

As far as I know, copyright is enforce for any works generated after 1923. There is a problem sometimes, however, in finding the copyright holder of various works, as the patent office hasn't exactly kept accurate records. The Google print library project is currently running into this problem. Books, for example, can have the copyright held by the author, publisher, or a third party; ownership can also change hands. It is a shame that the system is so piece-meal and archaic, as many works that are currently out-of-print and out of public domain are in a grey area.

The problem also arises with old radio programs from the Golden Age. They are readily available on the internet, but technically are under copyright. However, nobody seems to care, or is old enough to have a stake.