How Copyright Protection Works

What does copyright protect?
Copyright is a type of intellectual property law, and it protects original works of authorship including dramatic, literary, artistic works and musical, and such as poetry, movies, novels, songs, computer software and architecture. Copyright does not protect ideas, facts, systems or methods of operation, though it may protect the way these things are expressed.

How can I copyright my website?
The original authorship that appears on a website may be protected by copyright. This includes artwork, writings, photographs and other forms of authorship protected by copyright. Actions for registering the contents of a website can be found in Copyright Registration for Online Works.

How about copyright and my domain name?
Copyright law does not protect domain names. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers that is a nonprofit organization that has understood the responsibility for domain name system management is administrating the assignation of domain names through recognized registers.

How about copyright to a slogan, logo, name or title?
Copyright does not protect titles, names, slogans or short phrases. In a few cases these things may be protected as trademarks. Get in touch with U.S. Patent & Trademark Office on phone 800-786-9199 for additional information. Nevertheless copyright protection may be obtainable for logo artwork that contains enough authorship.

Can I protect my ideas?
Copyright does not protect systems, concepts, ideas or methods of doing something. You may convey your ideas in writing or drawings and claim copyright in your explanation, but that copyright will not protect the idea itself as revealed in your written or artistic work.

Copyright protection and unpublished work.
Publication is not required for copyright protection. It can be done with unpublished work as well.

Architecture copyright protection?
Architectural work became subject matter to copyright protection on the 1.st of December 1990. The copyright law defines architectural work as “the design of a building embodied in any tangible medium of expression, including a building, drawings or architectural plans.” Copyright protection extends to any architectural work created on or after Dec. 1, 1990. Any architectural works that were incomplete and embodied in unpublished plans or drawings on that date and were constructed by December 31, 2002, are entitled to protection. Architectural designs embodied in buildings constructed prior to December 1, 1990, are not entitled for copyright protection. See Copyright Claims in Architectural Works