What Works Are Protected?


Copyright protects "original works of authorship" that are fixed in a tangible medium or form of expression. The works of authorship being protected include the following categories:

1. Literary works----Novels, nonfiction prose, poetry, newspaper articles and newspapers, magazine articles and magazines, computer software, software documentation and manuals, training manuals, manuals, catalogs, brochures, ads (text), and compilations such as business directories;

2. Dramatic works----Plays, operas, and skits, including any accompanying music;

3. Musical works----Songs, advertising jingles, and instrumentals, including any accompanying words;

4. Pantomimes and choreographic works----Ballets, modern dance, jazz dance, and mime works;

5. Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works----Photographs, posters, maps, paintings, drawings, graphic art, display ads, cartoon strips and cartoon characters, stuffed animals, statues, paintings, and works of fine art;

6. Motion pictures and other audiovisual works----Movies, documentaries, travelogues, training films and videos, television shows, television ads, and interactive multimedia works;

7. Sound recordings----Recordings of music, sounds, or words;

8. Architectural works----Building designs, whether in the form of architectural plans, drawings, or the constructed building itself.

What Works Are NOT Protected?

Several categories of material are generally not eligible for federal copyright protection, which include the following categories, among others:

1. Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression;

2. Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs, mere variations of
typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring, mere listings of ingredients or
contents;

3. Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a description, explanation, or illustration;

4. Works consisting entirely of information that is common property and containing no original authorship, e.g., lists or tables taken from public documents or other common sources.

(Updated 10/4/2012 by AG)

For detailed information on copyright, please click the following links: