Copyright Registration

FAQ: How do you know if your work is safe when submitting to manufacturers?

I get this question a lot – here is what one artist emailed:

“When you have a potential lead with a company and you present them some of your art work, how do you know your work is safe? Should you copyright your work first? How do I know my work is safe if and when I present them my work online.”

Here is my response:

I copyright my art every quarter – bundle all your new stuff together, keep good records and get into the habit. Then if you are infringed in a big way – you can do something about it in court. If you are infringed in a smaller way and it isn’t worth legal fees, you can at least send a cease and desist letter, with proof of copyright, and usually scare people into legal alignment.

You are never 100% safe. There are disreputable people and companies out there. The best defense is to do your research (as much as possible) on companies before sending your art. Always send low res files for review as well.

However – without showing anyone your work, you’ll never get anywhere. So do what you can and don’t obsess. That’s how I approach it anyway.

I hope this helps!

Here’s to your creative success!

– Tara Reed

P.S. Here is a blog post I wrote about registering copyrights in large groups - save some money for art supplies that way!

Registering Copyrights in Groups – update

Interestingly enough, the day the FAQ about registering copyrights in groups posted to my blog, I received a letter from the Library of Congress about my most recent group registration. (Funny how things happen like that sometimes.) It is a form letter explaining a few particulars and referencing some rules that pertain to registering in groups.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE LETTER FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

I believe the “work not covered by copyrights” that might have prompted me to receive this letter is the inclusion of word art with my images. Words and text aren’t covered by copyrights but need to be trademarked. I admit to not always taking the time to take them out of my registrations.

If you want to see the referenced regulations, I’m sure you can find them at www.copyright.gov

Hope this helps!

– Tara Reed

FAQ: How do you register copyrights in bulk?

I am often asked how I go about registering my art with the Library of Congress.

Do I do each image individually? No – I’d go broke!

Do I do each collection separately? I used to but now I have learned the art of bulk registrations and save lots of cash each year.

Cheryl Hodgson has talked about this in several of her ask calls – you can get her first call for free by registering at www.AskCherylHodgson.com or buy the subsequent calls at www.ArtLicensingInfo.com/audio-archives.html. Attorney Sarah Feingold talks a lot about the ins and outs of copyright registration but not details about bulk registrations in her eBook, Copyrights for Artists*. Other artists’ attorneys have advised bulk registrations as well.

Here is how I register my art in groups:

I register new groups of art at the end of each quarter.

I put my art on 8/5 x 11 pages and save them as smallest size pdfs. Then I create a large pdf – sometimes 30-50 pages, and submit as a group each quarter. There are often several images per page. I submit the PDF electronically – it is currently $35 per submission and goes through much faster than submitting by mail. Go to www.copyright.gov for submission details.

The most important part of registering a lot of art at the same time is that you need to be EXTREMELY ORGANIZED. Save the pdf, print it out for backup. If you ever have an infringement issue, it is up to you to know which registration group the art in question was a part of. The kind people at the Library of Congress will not go through your files and figure it out for you.

Why do you need to register anyway? Don’t you own the copyright just by creating the art?

Yes. However, in the US, you can not take someone to court and receive damages or attorney fees for copyright infringement without having registered your art with the Library of Congress. No registration? No judge frowning at those who infringe upon your copyrights!

And it has to be the Library of Congress – websites that say they collect and date stamp your art to prove you made it and when only put money in the website owner’s pocket. It won’t protect you legally. Nor will mailing it to yourself. So spend the $35 per registration and protect yourself just in case…

I hope that helps and I wish you much success and little (if any!) copyright infringement!

– Tara Reed

P.S. Interestingly enough, the day the FAQ about registering copyrights in groups posted to my blog, I received a letter from the Library of Congress about my most recent group registration. (Funny how things happen like that sometimes.) It is a form letter explaining a few particulars and referencing some rules that pertain to registering in groups.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE LETTER FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

I believe the “work not covered by copyrights” that might have prompted me to receive this letter is the inclusion of word art with my images. Words and text aren’t covered by copyrights but need to be trademarked. I admit to not always taking the time to take them out of my registrations.

If you want to see the referenced regulations, I’m sure you can find them at www.copyright.gov

Branding the Artist: Added Protection to Copyright for Art?

This is another guest blog post by attorney Cheryl Hodgson, one of the Art Licensing Info experts and Ask Call participants.

While a copyright is valid without registration, the very statement is misleading. Copyright registration is essential to preserve key remedies for infringement. Unless registered prior to infringement, attorney’s fees and statutory damages are not available. It is often difficult, if not impossible, to prove actual damages or profits attributable to theft of a copyrighted work. Moreover, without the threat of having to pay attorney’s fees to the copyright owner, there is little, if any, chance of finding counsel to bring a costly and drawn out infringement action on a speculative basis. Establishing a strong brand identity for a particular character or product line can serve as an added source of protection and increase the value of the Intellectual Property beyond mere copyright.

An artist’s name, as well as names and logos for particular product lines, can also be protected as trademarks for the goods on which they are licensed. For example, characters from Star Wars have been on bedding, toys, and just about everything else. While the artistic expression of a character remains protectible by copyright, registration of the character and/or its name on the various products as a trademark has been a strategy of film studios for many years. The character becomes part of the “branded entertainment” package that not only brings in additional revenues but helps create wide spread exposure and recognition of the character as a trademark.

Trade Dress protection offers tremendous opportunities to expand IP protection beyond copyright, especially where artists develop a unique use of color combinations and/or designs which become identified with them. Developing protectible trade dress requires advance planning since use must be more than “just another pretty picture.”

Product packaging and designs, including color combinations and artistic images, can function as trade dress, provided they are not used in a merely ornamental manner. To be an inherently distinctive aspect of trade dress, a design should “come out into the spotlight of real trademark significance” and ‘hit the buyer in the eye.” See 1 J.T. McCarthy, McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition §7:28 (4th ed. 2000). “Use of distinctive design elements must be in a manner so unusual, unique, or unexpected as to be “automatically perceived by customers as an indicator of origin – a trademark.” Id. §8:13. One case example was the use of a rose design as background on a CLARINS product packaging. Registration of the rose background was refused since use was only as decorative background, not as a mark signifying the source of the products.

With proper counsel, visual artists could well do both, namely maintaining the artist aspect of the use, but also creating an additional use consistent across many design groups that come to signify the artist’s work.

Here’s to your creative and defendable success!

– Tara Reed

P.S. Subscribe to or read Cheryl’s blog to get even more great legal insights – www.BrandAideBlog.com

P.P.S. To register your art with the Library of Congress, start at www.copyright.gov

More great legal insights for artists from attorney Cheryl Hodgson

I don’t know about you but the Monthly Ask Calls just energize me! Even if I have had a less than spectacular day, by the time I am done talking art licensing for an hour, I’m smiling and raring to go!

The January 20, 2010 call with attorney Cheryl Hodgson was no exception. I’ve known Cheryl for a year now and find her to be a source of upbeat energy and sage advice. She can put legal issues into terms anyone can understand and isn’t afraid to be practical when sharing her opinions. (Any attorney that says it isn’t always the best choice to sue or go to court is ok in my book.)

If you missed the live call, here is what we covered:

Is it ok to use licensee logos for links on my website or should I get permission first?
If I create art as a person (outside of my business), but then want to license it via my business, how do I set that up?
Do I need to move my business license each time I move to a different state?
We have a licensee that hasn’t provided reports and after a year claims there is no revenue. Is there a way to handle this properly without exorbitant legal fees, or should we just walk away?
What if anything can I do about a company who has blatantly copied a design of mine and is selling it if I haven’t registered it with the Library of Congress?
How do you work with multiple manufacturers in the same category without getting into conflicts of interest?
I’ve recently been told that because I do different kinds of art – I should use a pseudonym (like a stage name) to differentiate my styles. What are the legal ramifications of this?
Several questions and more details about how to register groups of art in a single submission to the Library of Congress to save time and money.

So whether you were on the live call or not, you just might want to invest in the mp3 replay and make sure you didn’t miss anything. The audio is available and a mere $15 through 1/31. The cost goes up to $25 on 2/1. (Still a great deal!) Click the button below and get your copy today!

We also promised you a link to get the PowerPoint tutorial on how to register copyrights online so here it is…

Learn more about Cheryl and keep up with her blog at www.BrandAideBlog.com

Here’s to your creative and legally savvy success!

– Tara

P.S. Next up… www.AskAboutSEOforArtists.com – learn how to get the right traffic to your website so you can concentrate on your creativity.

P.P.S. Don’t forget, the winner of the “Art Licensing Story” video contest will be announced on the 2/17 call, when we explain “link love” in more detail. Have you entered yet? CLICK HERE for all the details!

P.P.S.S. Did you hear??? Mary Engelbreit will be the Ask Call expert in March! www.MaryEngelbreit.com/AskME/