General Music Chat

Here is a link to an article of interest to those of us who write our own songs and copyright them.
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http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Music/1 ... index.html
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I don't know for how long this link will be good. It is to CNN news, and the article appeared today, 12-3-06

And by the way thanks for the article. Its a trip to know that these artists can lose what should have been, always theirs.

What do you know of copyrights. How easy, how hard is it? What process must one take?

Big Papi
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For others reading this, the article says our copyrights in the USA are for 95 years, and 50 years in the UK. The Beatles, the Stones, and some others will be losing some copyrights in the coming years
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OK.
Got some finished songs you want to protect?
You should go to the Library of Congress and download form 'PA,' and all related material explaining it. Another available form is 'SR,' but most people will be using form 'PA.'
Your application becomes a legal document, and it requires you to fill in the correct terms.
Read carefully, because when you fill in the form, - there are a few spots that are looking for specific phrases.
If you guess wrong, you'll have to do it again, and that'll probably delay the process 4 - 6 months.
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All that said - it's actually pretty easy.
You can record your songs on cassette tape, or DVD.
It's $45 per song, or $45 per collection of songs. For example, if you have 7 songs ready, you do not have to send in 7 separate recordings. Put then on one tape/CD, and call it a collection. Every individual song is copyrighted.
Send it via Certified Mail.
If all goes well, you might get your copyright in 6 months or so.
Yeah, it takes about 6 months.
They get thousands of packages, and because of the a**h*** terrorists, every package has to be screened for toxins, radioativity, and explosives.

But, as soon as you get your certified mail receipt back (proving that they have your recording), - for all intents and purposes, you can consider you music copyrighted.
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I think that they only listen to the recording if you're challenged.
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Do NOT just mail it to yourself, and count on the postal cancellation as a 'poor man's copyright.' It will NOT stand up in court.
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It takes 6 months, so start recording today.

You really don't want to copyright as a collection. If down the road, you chose to sell one of your songs, it gets tricky, because the copyright is for the collection, not the individual song.

Copyrighting indivifual songs is the best way to go for most people.

It is a shame the fee is so much higher now than it was. Used to be $20 per song. Technically, a song is legally copyrighted from the moment of creation. The problem comes in PROVING that YOU are the one who created it, at the time you claim you did. And that is why the government copyright office is a form of proof, as they document receiving your song, recording, sheet music, etc... and date it. This is pretty strong proof of your ownership of the song.

I suppose the poor man's copyright is better than nothing, but nothing is as reliable in court as a registered copyright as documented through the US copyright office.

Bump.
And, even more copyrighting info here . . .

For others reading this, the article says our copyrights in the USA are for 95 years

Well they got their facts wrong because every reference I can find says any work copywrited in the US after 1978 is copywritten for the life of the author plus 70 years. If there are multiple authors it is 70 years from the last authors death.

So if you write and copywrite a tune at 20, live to be 75 and then add 70 years, well if we do that math that is longer then 95 years.

Next, you can transfer your copywrite to your heirs and they in turn when the copywrite comes up for expiration can Reaquire and thus keep the copywrite indefinetly.

As I have stated many times before, a song is copywritten the minute it is put in a tangible format. So legally no one is allowed to use it. No need to officially copywrite however, if you plan to bring an infringement suit the song must be copywritten.

NO OTHER FORM OF REGISTRATION PROTECTS YOUR SONGS LIKE A FORMAL COPYWRITE.

Another tidbit. You only have a 3 year statute of limitation to bring an infringment suit from the date of infringement. Any delay can harm your case and proving infringment is extremely difficult and costly with or without a copywrite.

All my comments are taken form the Musicians Business and Legal Guide 3rd edition.

The difficulty and cost of proving infringment comes from conversations with my attorney.

Methinks Wegsterman is correct.
70 years.