Copyright Bomb Quietly Ticking
- From: J Flenner <varney@[redacted]>
- Subject: Copyright Bomb Quietly Ticking
- Date: Wed, 12 Apr 2006 08:17:24 EDT
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http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1144228258911
Copyright Bomb Quietly Ticking
Law allows artists to reclaim work
Pamela A. MacLean
The National Law Journal
April 12, 2006
A copyright time bomb has been quietly ticking away for the music and
publishing industry for nearly 30 years -- and may soon explode into a
plethora of legal disputes over ownership rights, intellectual property
litigators say.
The Copyright Act of 1976 gave artists, songwriters and authors a new
right: the power to recapture control of works sold early in their
careers before the value became known.
That recapture process allows an author, after 35 to 40 years, to
terminate any transfer of interest in his or her copyright assigned to
publishers for works created since 1978. Congress wanted authors to be
able to reclaim control of their creations and negotiate better royalty
deals for popular works.
But the law also imposes complex notice requirements for authors to
advise the current rights holder that they plan to reclaim their rights.
In 2003, authors began entering that notice window for rights that would
be reclaimed in 2013.
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