The information on this page came from:

http://www.teachingcopyright.org/handout/copyright-faq

What is "Copyright"

Copyright is a form of legal protection automatically provided to the authors of “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works.

U.S. copyright law generally gives the author/creator or owner of an original creative work an exclusive right to:

• Reproduce (copy) or distribute the original work to the public (e.g., create and sell copies of a film)
• Create new works based upon the original work (e.g., make a movie based on a book)
• Perform or display the work publicly (e.g., perform a play)

Violation of one of these rights is called copyright infringement. However, the use may be authorized by copyright limitations (such as fair use) described below.

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What type of works are protected by "copyright"?

• Literary works
• Music and lyrics
• Dramatic works and music
• Pantomimes and choreographic works
• Photographs, graphics, paintings and sculptural works
• Motion pictures and other audiovisual works
• Video games and computer software
• Audio recordings
• Architectural works

What is not protected by copyright?

• Unfixed works that have not been recorded in a tangible, fixed form (e.g., a song you made up and sang in the shower)
• Work in the public domain (see below)
• Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; numbers
• Ideas and facts
• Processes and systems (e.g., the Dewey decimal system)
• Federal government works (e.g., the tax code)

If I have an idea in my head, is it automatically copyrighted?

No, ideas are not copyrightable. Only tangible forms of expression (e.g., a book, play, drawing, film, or photo, etc.) are copyrightable. Once you express your idea in a fixed form — as a digital painting, recorded song, or even scribbled on a napkin — it is automatically copyrighted if it is an original work of authorship.

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