MANDATORY DEPOSIT - Steve Coker
Subject: MANDATORY DEPOSIT
From: Steve Coker
Date: November 12, 1998

MANDATORY DEPOSIT FOR WORKS PUBLISHED IN THE UNITED STATES

Although a copyright registration is not required, the Copyright Act establishes
a mandatory deposit requirement for works published in the United States. See
the definition of "publication" on page 3. In general, the owner of copyright or
the owner of the exclusive right of publication in the work has a legal
obligation to deposit in the Copyright Office, within 3 months of publication in
the United States, two copies (or in the case of sound recordings, two
phonorecords) for the use of the Library of Congress. Failure to make the
deposit can result in fines and other penalties but does not affect copyright
protection. 

Certain categories of works are exempt entirely from the mandatory deposit
requirements, and the obligation is reduced for certain other categories. For
further information about mandatory deposit, request Circular 7d, "Mandatory
Deposit of Copies or Phonorecords for the Library of Congress."
_______________________

The Copyright Act defines publication as follows: 

"Publication" is the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the
public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending.
The offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for
purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display
constitutes publication. A public performance or display of a work does not of
itself constitute publication.

A further discussion of the definition of "publication" can be found in the
legislative history of the 1976 Copyright Act. The legislative reports define
"to the public" as distribution to persons under no explicit or implicit
restrictions with respect to disclosure of the contents. The reports state that
the definition makes it clear that the sale of phonorecords constitutes
publication of the underlying work, for example, the musical, dramatic, or
literary work embodied in a phonorecord. The reports also state that it is clear
that any form of dissemination in which the material object does not change
hands, for example, performances or displays on television, is not a publication
no matter how many people are exposed to the work. However, when copies or
phonorecords are offered for sale or lease to a group of wholesalers,
broadcasters, or motion picture theaters, publication does take place if the
purpose is further distribution, public performance, or public display.


U.S. Copyright Office
Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave. S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

[email protected]
http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/
11/10/98

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