Hi there,
If your postcards are 50 years old or more, it's highly likely that
they've already passed into the public domain, and would thus be free
to use if the original term of copyright was not renewed:
"Works Copyrighted before January 1, 1978
Under the law in effect before 1978, copyright was secured either on
the date a work was published with notice of copyright or on the date
of registration if the work was registered in unpublished form. In
either case, copyright endured for a first term of 28 years from the
date on which it was secured. During the last (28th) year of the first
term, the copyright was eligible for renewal. The copyright law
extends the renewal term from 28 to 67 years for copyrights in
existence on January 1, 1978.
However, for works copyrighted prior to January 1, 1964, the copyright
still must have been renewed in the 28th calendar year to receive the
67-year period of added protection. The amending legislation enacted
June 26, 1992, automatically extends this second term for works first
copyrighted between January 1, 1964, and December 31, 1977. For more
detailed information on the copyright term, write or call the
Copyright Office and request Circular 15a, "Duration of Copyright,"
and Circular 15t, "Extension of Copyright Terms."
Works First Published before 1978: The Copyright Notice
General Information about the Copyright Notice
In investigating the copyright status of works first published before
January 1, 1978, the most important thing to look for is the notice of
copyright. As a general rule under the previous law, copyright
protection was lost permanently if the notice was omitted from the
first authorized published edition of a work or if it appeared in the
wrong form or position. The form and position of the copyright notice
for various types of works were specified in the copyright statute.
Some courts were liberal in overlooking relatively minor departures
from the statutory requirements, but a basic failure to comply with
the notice provisions forfeited copyright protection and put the work
into the public domain in this country."
How to Investigate Copyright Status
http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ22.html#before
Check the copyright dates on the cards you have, as well as any
publisher information included. You can use this information to
determine if the copyright was renewed in its 28th year by searching
at the Library of Congress:
Search Copyright Records: Registrations and Documents
http://www.copyright.gov/records/
If no renewals turn up, the items are in the public domain and you may
use them. (If renewals *do* turn up and they are current, you can
obtain contact information for the current copyright holder from the
LOC copyright office.)
Additionally, if there is no copyright notice on the cards, and they
were created prior to 1978, they are not protected by copyright, and
are likewise free for use:
"Absence of Copyright Notice
For works first published before 1978, the complete absence of a
copyright notice from a published copy generally indicates that the
work is not protected by copyright. For works first published before
March 1, 1989, the copyright notice is mandatory, but omission could
have been cured by registration before or within 5 years of
publication and by adding the notice to copies published in the United
States after discovery of the omission. Some works may contain a
notice, others may not. The absence of a notice in works published on
or after March 1, 1989, does not necessarily indicate that the work is
in the public domain."
How to Investigate Copyright Status
http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ22.html#before
Of course, even when using works that have passed into the public
domain, it's advisable to indicate where the works came from (for
example: "Niagara Falls, Ontario Photographers, 1902")
If you need further assistance or more information about investigating
copyrights, please ask for clarification. I'll be glad to help.
--Missy
Search terms: [ copyright rules ] |
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