; The Lifecycle of Copyright: 1924 Works Enter the Public Domain
"Last year, for the first time in twenty years,
published creative works entered into the public domain in the United
States. Works from 1923 saw their copyright terms end, meaning they were
no longer subject to copyright protection. With the new year, works
published in 1924 joined them.
The public domain is an important part of the lifecycle of copyright.
The U.S. Constitution set the stage for Congress to pass copyright law
protection for creative works, granting creators exclusive rights,
subject to certain exceptions and limitations, for the use of their
works. But, that control is not infinite. Just as significant is the
Constitution’s assertion that those exclusive rights should only exist
for “limited times.”
Once in the public domain, anyone can use a work without permission
from the author. This often means that works in the public domain
inspire the creation of new works, adaptations, derivatives, and
more—which further enriches the cultural landscape of the country.
On January 1, 2020, thousands of historical and cultural works from
1924 entered the public domain in the United States. These are just a
few of the notable highlights."
No comments:
Post a Comment