Hi artperson,
Briefly, using the information you've provided, you are free to
distribute your clip art only in the United States, and for your own
protection you should include the notice, "For download and
distribution in the United States only" (or something to that effect)
on your website. I've come to that conclusion because, even though the
illustrations are not in the public domain in the UK (the death of the
artist plus 70 years equal 2021), they are in the public domain in the
U.S. (everything published before 1923).
>>> Who's law applies, the US or UK?
Project Gutenberg: Whose law applies?
When we distribute in the United States, U.S. law applies. When we
distribute to other countries, their law applies. That is why Peter
Pan is marked for US distribution only. It is public domain in the
U.S. but not in the U.K.
http://pge.rastko.net/howto/copyright-howto
What if the book is copyrighted in some countries, but public domain in others?
"Consider first whether it's copyrighted in your own country (or the
country where your Web site is located, if that's different). I will
generally list books on the Online Books Page if they're public domain
in the countries they're being served from. However, if they are not
yet public domain in the US (where this page is located) I will
include a warning mentioning this.
As far as I'm aware, there are not yet hard-and-fast rules on the
distribution of legal responsibility for downloading etexts from a
country where they're public domain to a country where they're not.
But I would at the least include a warning if you know that some of
the texts you serve are copyrighted in some countries. And I would
avoid downloading texts from other countries that are copyrighted in
your own country."
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/okbooks.html#different
c) Special Concerns about Digitizing Foreign Works
"First, you may have noticed that Peter Pan is a foreign work, written
by a Scottish author. That doesn't mean you can't digitize it, and in
fact Project Gutenberg project has put it on the web. You might look
at the wording (under "bibliographic details") that Project Gutenberg
uses with the Peter Pan text, recognizing that the laws of other
nations differ from the United States.
Second, if a foreign work has fallen into the public domain in the
United States, it may be clear sailing to digitize it and use it
in-house. Publishing on the web is international, however, and owners
of works that still enjoy copyright in another country may challenge
you on their soil. These immense problems in jurisdiction and
conflicts of laws are currently under discussion internationally by
the Hague Special Commission."
http://www.llrx.com/features/digitization2.htm#Rule
>>> The laws
- United States - (<1923 = public domain)
"Works first published before January 1, 1923 with proper copyright
notice entered the public domain no later than 75 years from the date
copyright was first secured. Hence, all works whose copyrights were
secured before 1923 are now in the public domain, regardless of where
they were published. (This is the rule Project Gutenberg uses most
often)"
"Rule of Thumb: Published before 1923 or published at least 95 years
ago in the U.S."
http://pge.rastko.net/howto/copyright-howto
When U.S. Works Pass Into the Public Domain:
"Published before 1923: In public domain"
http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm
How do I find out whether the book is in the public domain?
"Anything copyrighted prior to 1923 is in the public domain.
(Practically speaking, this includes anything published prior to 1923,
since publication without copyright put the work straight into the
public domain."
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/okbooks.html#whatpd
- United Kingdom (1951 + 70 yrs = 2021)
How long does UK copyright last?
Copyright in a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (including
a photograph) lasts until 70 years after the death of the author."
http://www.patent.gov.uk/copy/indetail/ownership.htm
A possible exception would be if your book was published by the Crown.
Q. How long does Crown copyright last?
A. The duration of Crown copyright depends largely on whether the work
in question has been published. Generally a Crown copyright work which
has been published will have copyright protection for 50 years from
the end of the year in which the work was published.
http://www.hmso.gov.uk/faqs.htm
>>> Additional Link of Interest:
WATCH File (Writers, Artists, and Their Copyright Holders)
http://tyler.hrc.utexas.edu/
Search for copyright information:
http://www.copyright.gov/records/cohm.html
How Can I Tell Whether a Book Can Go Online?
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/okbooks.html
Library Digitization Projects and Copyright
http://www.llrx.com/features/digitization.htm
I hope I've helped to sort out the copyright maze for you. If you have
any questions, please post a clarification request *before*
closing/rating my answer and I'll be happy to reply. Please remember
that this is for information purposes only and it's always wise to
seek professional advice.
Thank you,
hummer
I used the extensive research I have on the subject plus searched
copyright websites for relevant terms, such as:
uk copyright expired
copyright public domain u.s. uk
copyright uk 1922
copyright public domain |
Clarification of Answer by
hummer-ga
on
19 May 2005 10:55 PDT
Hi David,
The clarifications that you've posted aren't really requests of
clarification of my answer but rather are quite different and
questions in their own right. It took me quite a while to research
your original question but if you want the same amount of research to
go into your new questions, you'll need to post a new question on GA.
That said, I'll give you my thoughts and hope that helps.
"Thanks, maybe you can help with this one other situation. I have an
old 1900 book published in the US with an illustration I'd like to
use, but I've seen the same illustration used in a 1920 UK book. The
illustrator died in 1945. Is this illustration now protected in the
UK? Or has the intervening time (1900-1920) ruled out any UK
protection?"
I think the answer would be the same for this scenario as in my
original answer, that is, for U.S. distribution only.
"Oh, and one more thing, if you can figure it out...What rule applies
when the illustration in an old UK book is not credited? I've got a
few older books, around 1900, where the art work has no name to be
found."
I think you would be free to use them if the illustrator is unknown,
especially if the book is otherwise in the public domain.
Hope that helps!
Take care,
hummer
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