What Is the Duration of a Copyright?
The federal Copyright Act of 1976 currently governs duration of copyrightable material. The act in its entirety is a form of protection against infringement granted to authors of original works or authorship, including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other works.
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Copyright Act of 1790
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The first federal copyright act was enacted in 1790 and permitted copyright protection for 14 years with the option of a 14-year extension.
Copyright Act of 1909
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Revisions in 1909 extended copyright protection to 28 years with a 28-year extension, for a total of 56 years.
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Copyright Act of 1976
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The Copyright Act of 1976 extended copyright protection to either 75 years, or the life of the author plus 50 years.
Current Copyright Law
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In 1978, the law was again modified to extend copyright protection. Currently, copyrightable material enjoys protection for the life of its author plus 70 years. If the material is the result of a contractual relationship between the author and another person or agency, such as a corporation, copyright protection endures for 120 years after the material was created or 95 years after its publication, whichever time period is shorter.
Public Domain
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After copyright protection expires, a work enters public domain. Copyrightable material published in the United States before 1923 is considered public domain and can be used by anyone for any purpose, free of charge.
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