What is a Copyright?

Part of the Video Series How to Copyright Your Work

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A copyright is a legal term that refers to the author of an original piece of work being the sole owner of that work, which gives that person the right to re-publish or alter that work however they like. Learn more about how you can keep your original, published work under your control in this free video series.

Contact: www.nathans-reel.com

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Video Transcript

What is a Copyright?
Hi, I'm Nathan Boehme writer and film director with Expert Village. In this series it's all about copyrights. So what exactly is a copyright? A copyright is a form of protection grounded in the US constitution and granted by law for original work of authorship, fixed in a tangible medium of expression. So what does all that mean exactly? Basically it means if you can create it then you have the right to protect it and legally claim it as your own. Copyright wasn't established until after the invention of the printing press Charles the II of England became concerned by the unregulating copying of books. Under the licensing acts 1662, established a register of license books. The first real copyright act was statued of Anne which gave the publishers right to written material for a fixed period of time. After which the copyright expired, today copyright has grown from a simple legal concept regulating copying rights to a giant legal blanket protecting things like musical recordings, works of art, computer software and agriculture design.

About the Expert

Expert: Nathan Boehme (bay'mee) is a writer, director, & editor currently living and working in Los Angeles. Read More