[Dixielandjazz] Copyright--why am I not surprised?

[Scott Anthony]

It is my understanding that all works published (or performed, which 
constitutes publishing) before Jan 1, 1923 are in the public domain no 
matter how long the original composers have been dead. However, arrangements 
of tunes may still be protected, or lyrics written or changed after that 
date could still be protected.

Also, once a tune is in the public domain, it can't be put back under 
copyright protection.

The above appears to pertain only to the US. Outside the US there are 
possibly other laws.

See http://www.pdinfo.com/copyrt.htm

Here's an excerpt (without the original formatting)

United States Copyright Law
US copyright law is found in Title 17 of the United States Code and is 
administered by the US Copyright Office.   " Terms for Copyright 
Protection", a U.S. Government publication, summarizes the current duration 
of copyright protection for published works as follows:
Works created after 1/1/1978  -  life of the longest surviving author plus 
70 years -  earliest possible PD date is 1/1/2048
Works registered before 1/1/1978  -  95 years from the date copyright was 
secured.
Works registered before 1/1/1923 - Copyright protection for 75 years has 
expired and these works are in the public domain.
The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act was signed into law on October 
27, 1998.  Prior to the Sonny Bono 20 year copyright term extension, 
copyright protection for works registered before 1/1/1978 was 75 years; 
therefore, compositions registered in 1922 or earlier entered the public 
domain on 1/1/1998.  The 1998 copyright extension did not extend copyright 
protection from 75 to 95 years for songs already in the public domain so . . 
.
The Good News -  works published in the United States in 1922 or earlier are 
in the public domain even if  they are not yet 95 years old.
The Bad News - no new works will enter the public domain until January 1, 
2019.
You can confirm the above information about public domain and copyright 
protection in "Extension of Copyright Terms", Circular 15t, of the U.S. 
Copyright Office.  Specifically the last paragraph of Page 3 states in part 
"Works published before January 1, 1923, have fallen into the public 
domain."  We suggest that you print this circular and keep it as part of 
your public domain research materials.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ministry of Jazz" <jazzmin at actcom.net.il>
To: <santh at pacbell.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 21, 2007 1:12 AM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Copyright--why am I not surprised?


> Shalom Jazz Fans,
>
> In trying to get a license for publication of my CD from our Israeli
> equivalent of ASCAP, I noted on my application that 7 of the 16 pieces on
> the disk are public domain, on the basis that they were composed/published
> before 1923. Most of them were indeed listed as public domain in a 
> database
> I found on the internet -- don't recall which one. Now the local 
> authorities
> are telling me that only 2 are public domain in their database, because 
> the
> composers of the other 5 works have not been dead for 75 years. In the
> databases I checked, most of the songs have 3-4 composers/lyricists 
> listed.
> Do they all have to be dead 75 years before the copyright expires? [Hey, 
> has
> anyone considered taking out contracts on young composers to reduce the
> duration of the copyright? Aw, we wouldn't be around to benefit from it
> anyway. Never mind.]
>
> Not sure why I'm asking, because it will cost me more to get a lawyer and
> contest their claim, and to delay the issuing of the license, than it will
> to just pay the fee. But still I'd kind of like to know.
>
> Without reopening the whole can of worms -- we've been over this on DJML
> lots of times -- can anyone verify for my peace of mind what the current 
> law
> is?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Elazar
> Doctor Jazz Dixieland Band
> Tekiya Brass Ensemble
> Jerusalem, Israel
> www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz
> +972-2-679-2537
>
> P.S. In keeping with the copyright people's policy of creating a lose-lose
> situation for the artists, I have discovered that, even if one publishes 
> an
> album of works that are entirely original so no copyright issues are
> involved at all, you still need to get (i.e., pay for) a license from the
> copyright police to verify that your work is NOT copyrighted by anyone 
> else!
> So they get you either way. I'm still waiting for my royalties for the 
> work
> I did on my last CD. If we don't do our work, nobody gets anything. But if
> we do make the music and generate the business, everyone gets their hands 
> in
> the pot. Something about this stinks.
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