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 NetPublications, Inc. and U.S. Copyright Law
NetPublications, Inc., is an important part of the intellectual property community. Virtually everything
produced by us is intellectual property of someone else and as a result, it is covered by the
Federal Copyright Act. Copyright protection, provided under Title 17 of the U.S. Code, exists
for original works of expression, including literary, graphic, musical, dramatic, choreographic,
pictorial, and sculptural works; motion pictures and other
audio-visual works; and sound recordings. While the law was written before the ready availability
of computers, computer-generated work is also covered.
Works that cannot be copyrighted include: works not fixed in a tangible form of expression;
improvisational speeches not recorded; titles, names, short phrases, or slogans; familiar
symbols or designs; listings of ingredients or contents; principles, discoveries, methods, systems, processes, concepts, or devices;
and common property information such as calendars, weight and height chart, and other such lists and charts.
A copyright gives exclusive rights
A copyright gives the owner the exclusive rights to and the authority to permit others to:
reproduce the copyrighted work, prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work, distribute copies
of recordings of the copyrighted work to the general public, and to perform and/or display
the copyrighted work in public. Copyright protection covers only a particular description,
arrangement, or form;
it does not offer protection from others writng their own description, creating their own
arrangement, or making their own form.
Computers have given anyone with the right skills and software the ability to copy and modify text and photographic
images. As a result, it is becoming more and more difficult to determine whether an item is
an original work that might be copyrighted. Since we are in the digital environment, intellectual
property ownership can become more complicated. Due diligence is not only important. It is
a legal imperative.
Failure to protect copyrights can lead to fines ranging from $250 to $10,000 per infringement. Some state laws
provide even greater fines. In the case of printing, the fines can be applied on each copy, not
just to the overall job itself.
Copyright law does provide some protection to intermediaries such as printers. If a printer
relies
on representations by a customer that a work is not protected by copyright and where no copyright
notice was on the original work, the printer can claim that infringement was innocent. However,
the burden falls on the printer to prove that he/she was misled - a sometimes expensive proposition.
Further, innocence is subjective if a reasonable person should have suspected that the work
was copyrighted.
NetPublications, Inc. requires customers to affirm either that the material to be printed is in the public domain,
that the copyright is owned by the customer, or that the customer has received the copyright owner's
permissions to print the work can help establish proof of innocence. Often just the requirement
to affirm no copyright violation exists alerts customers to their responsibility with respect
to copyright.
NetPublications, Inc. Responsiblities
We will not be lulled into a sense of security by a customers' signed assurance. We will do a certain
amount of due diligence on works that we feel might be questionable. If we are in doubt, we
may assist the customer in tracking down questionable works. We know that software today allows for
manipulation of images so we are very careful with all images. As we ask all customers
to sign a release form, we hope this step lets them understand the significance and consequences
if a copyright violation change is brought.
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