Mary Casey is founder of The Harbor Law Group in Northborough, MA, which specializes in intellectual property law.

Meaning of Copyright

The law provides protection to the creator or owner of an original work in fixed form. The owner has exclusive right to reproduce the work, make derivatives of the work, distribute copies of the work by sale or otherwise, and display or perform the work publicly.

Examples of Copyright

There are many examples of copyrights. When you started your business, you probably created web content or marketing materials for your business. These sales and marketing tools are afforded copyright protection. When a photographer takes a picture, a programmer develops software, or an architect develops building plans, these creations are subject to copyrights.

Using Copyright Notice

Copyright protection occurs when the work is created. You can protect your copyright and make the public aware of your ownership by putting a copyright notice on the material. The copyright notice is very simple: the word “copyright”, followed by the copyright symbol, “©”, the year that the work was created, and the name of the copyright owner. By way of example: Copyright ©, 2014, The Harbor Law Group. It’s a simple but necessary way to let the public know you have copyrights in that material.

Copyright Registration

You may also want to federally register your copyright — especially if it’s something important or unique to your business. Depending on the complexity of the work to be registered, you can either hire an attorney to assist you with the application process or submit your application directly to the United States Copyright Office. For more information about copyright registration, please go to www.copyright.gov.

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