Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression Titles,  names,  short  phrases,  and  slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic   ornamentation,   lettering,   or coloring;  mere  listings  of  ingredients  or  contents Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished  from  a  description,  explanation,  or illustration Works consisting entirely of information that is common  property  and  containing  no  original authorship; for example: standard calendars, height and weight charts, tape measures and rules,  and  lists  or  tables  taken  from  public documents or other common sources Copyright  Secured  Automatically upon  Creation The way that copyright protection is secured is frequently   misunderstood.   No   publication   or registration or other action in the Copyright Office is required  to  secure  a  copyright  under  the  law.  Copyright is secured automatically when the work is created, and a work is “created” when it is fixed in a copy or imaging recording for the first time. In general, “copies” are material objects from which a work can be read or visually perceived either directly or with the aid of a machine or device, such as books, manuscripts, sheet music, film, videotape, or microfilm. Phonograph records  are  material  objects  embodying  fixations  of sounds (excluding, by statutory definition, motion picture  sound  tracks),  such  as  audio  tapes  and phonograph disks. Thus, for example, a song (the “work”) can be fixed in sheet music (copies) or in audio recordings,  or  both. Notice  of  Copyright When a work is published under the authority of the copyright owner, a notice of copyright should be placed on all publicly distributed copies. This notice is required even on works published outside of the United States. Omission  or  errors  will  not  necessarily  result  in forfeiture of the copyright. Therefore, just because a copyrightable  material  does  not  have  a  copyright  notice does not mean it is not copyrighted. However, infringers misled by the omission or error of copyright notice will be  shielded  from  liability. 8-3 How  Long  Copyright  Protection  Lasts The copyright law changed in 1978. The time that the  copyright  on  original  material  expires  is  determined by when it was created. WORKS ORIGINALLY COPYRIGHTED ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 1978.–A work that is created (fixed in tangible form for the first time) on or after January 1, 1978, is automatically protected from the moment of its creation. It is ordinarily given a term enduring for the author’s life, plus an additional 50 years after the author’s death. In the case of a joint work prepared by two or more authors that did not work for hire, the term lasts for 50 years after the last surviving author’s  death.  For  works  made  for  hire  and  for anonymous  and  pseudonymous  (fictitious  name)  works (unless the author's identity is revealed in Copyright Office records), the duration of copyright is 75 years from  publication  or  100  years  from  creation,  whichever is shorter. Works that were created before the 1978 law came into effect, but were neither published nor registered for copyright   before   January   1,   1978,   have   been automatically brought under the statute and are now provided federal copyright protection. The duration of copyright for these works is generally computed in the same way as for new works: the life plus 50 and the 75 or 100 year terms apply to them as well. However, all works in this category are guaranteed at least 25 years of  statutory  protection. WORKS COPYRIGHTED BEFORE JANU- ARY 1, 1978.–Under the law in effect before 1978, copyright was secured either on the date a work was published or on the date of registration if the work was registered in unpublished form. In either case, the copyright endured for a first term of 28 years from the date it was secured. During the last (28th) year of the first term, the copyright was eligible for renewal. The new  copyright  law  has  extended  the  renewal  term  from 28 to 47 years for copyrights that were still in existence on January 1, 1978. International  Copyright  Protection There  is  no  such  thing  as  an  “international copyright”  that  will  automatically  protect  an  author's writings  throughout  the  entire  world.  Protection  against unauthorized use in a particular country depends, basically, on the national laws of that country. However, most countries do offer protection to foreign works under certain conditions, and these conditions have been greatly simplified by international copyright treaties and conventions.