There are often customers consulting copyright registration, and have some doubts about the similarities and differences between copyright and trademarks. It is more appropriate to register copyright in their situation. In order to better assist customers to protect their intellectual property rights, we will explain and introduce the basic knowledge of copyright registration in the form of Q \u0026 Amp; A.

1. What is copyright (copyright)?

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Copyright (Copyright) is a form of protection based on the US constitution. Original Works of Authorship. In short, the copyright expresses the author's expression, such as what kind of strokes, what color drawing images, or what language, and what vocabulary expressions. As for how these expressions are fixed on a certain medium (such as printing or embroidery, on paper or on cloth), it is not the main scope of copyright protection. All works that have been published and unpublished can apply for copyright.

According to the United States 1976 Copywaling Law, the copyright owner has exclusive rights for copying, adapting, distribution, public performance and public display works. These proper rights can be freely transferred or sold to others by the copyright owner, or they may be allowed to use or give them to the heir or donate to the charity. Any violation of the owned rights of the copyright owner is infringement. The copyright owner can legally file a infringement lawsuit, requiring the infringer to bear responsibility, destroy infringement items, provide money compensation, or take other remedial measures. The copyright owner may also require the court to issue a preliminary and permanent ban to order the infringer to stop the current infringement or prevent the infringer from continuing such infringement in the future.

2. What is the difference between trademark and copyright?

Trademark and copyright are intellectual property rights, the rights, application requirements, and materials required for the protection of the two are significantly different.

Trademarks are the identification of the manufacturer or service provider of a certain product to help consumers identify. Through this logo, consumers can identify the quality of their products or services and clearly realize that the products/services provided by different brands are different from similar products/services provided by others. Because of this, the trademark registrar enjoys the exclusive and exclusive trademark of its registered trademarkRights implies that the brand's products/services have brand characteristics. The copyright (copyright) refers to the exclusive rights that the authors or other people (including legal persons) of literature, art, and scientific works (including legal persons), and protect the special expression of this work. For example, the original text of a Chinese book and its English translation constitute two independent copyrights.

Both trademarks and copyrights need to pass the manual review of the review authority when registering, but based on the different characteristics of the two Significant, simple is to distinguish from other trademarks, and needs to be verified with the real use of the trademark; the copyright is relatively interested in formal review. Similar to the registration system Prevent others from copying and stealing. Because the copyright itself has already existed since the author completed the creation of the work. The copyright registration obtained by our registration is to publicize the author's right to the copyright and record it in the form of a certificate, so that the author is convenient for the author to be more concise and concise when defending rights. Prove your ownership of the work. It is precisely because the extent of the substantive content of the copyright review and design is not deep, so the application cycle of copyright is much shorter than the trademark, and the application fee is cheaper. In addition, the application agency and protection period of the two are also very different.

3. What kind of work can register copyright?

The following registered works listed in the US Copyright Administration:

Literary Works: , Descriptive or interpreting text rather than dialogue or dramatic actions to explain, describe or narrate specific themes, themes or ideas. Generally speaking, literary works are used for reading, such as books, journals, manuscripts, recording products, films, tapes, disks or cards.
Performing Arts: The work aimed at performing for the audience. This category includes a variety of creative works, including music, lyrics, recording, script, script, dance, movie, video games and similar works.
Visual Art Visual Arts: Visual art works include various paintings, graphics and sculpture works, as well as architectural works.
Other digital content Other Digital Content: It includes various works used with computers, tablets, smartphones, video game platforms and other electronic devices. It also protects works used or distributed on the Internet, such as websites, blogs and other online content.
Video MotionPICTURES: A series of related images works, which are displayed through projectors, digital monitors or other devices. Including movies, TV shows, video games, animation and similar works.
Photo Photographs: This category includes a photo captured by digital files or other visual media (such as film). Examples include color photos, black and white photos, and similar types of images.

4. Who can register the copyright?

The Copyright Law stipulates that only \"copyright or any exclusive owner in the work can get the registration of copyright claims.\" However, there is an exception of this principle: \u0026 quot; works created for employment \u0026 quot; In other words, if the original author of the work is hired by others and for others, even if he is personal is the real original author, the employer will enjoy copyright. For example, a performing arts company hires a designer to design a promotional poster for it. If the proxy protocol contains the relevant clauses of the Works Made for Hire, the copyright of the publicity poster will belong to the performing arts company, not the designer.

Two types of job works are divided into two types: (1) works made by employees within their working scope; (2) Special customized or entrusted works. If the parties clearly agree that the work should be regarded as a job in the written document signed, the work should be regarded as a job work.

The concept of Works Made for Hire is more complicated, and then we will write a article specifically to explore this topic.

How long is the protection period of copyright? Can it be registered for renewal?

The copyright period of the work depends on several factors, the main factors include whether it has been published and when it will be published. If it has been published, the first publishing date will be used as the main rule of judgment. For the works created after January 1, 1978, the copyright protection period is from the date of completion of the work to 70 years after the author's lifetime. For anonymous works, pseudonym works, or works made for employment, the validity period of its copyright is 95 years from the first year of publication or 120 years from the year of self -creation.

Regarding the question of whether the renewal registration is required, due to the significant greater than the trademark during the copyright protection period, most of the works created after 1978 even more than 100 yearsTherefore, in terms of the current laws and regulations, the Copyright Administration clearly stated that the works created on January 1 or later 1978 do not need to register for renewal. As for the works published or registered before January 1, 1978, you need to make more detailed division according to the details of the specific year, the year of use, and other details. According to the different requirements of each type, Select whether to renew the exhibition and register.

6. Can I register copyright in the United States in China? \"

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[ 123] Of course. The U.S. Copyright Administration said: \"Any works protected by the US copyright law can be registered. This includes many foreign works. All unpublished works are protected in the United States regardless of the author's nationality. The place of residence or the country where the country is signed with the United States is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States. The works with other organizations are protected by the US Copyright Law

Seven. What are the benefits of registering copyright?

Because of the lack of understanding of copyright, many people only know that they need to register trademarks, but ignore the registration of copyright. When the copyright belongs to the dispute, the difference is realized. The benefits of registering copyright:

It is necessary to register American works before filed an infringement lawsuit to the court. This action will greatly improve the efficiency and success rate of the trial of the case. [123 123 ]

Registration can establish a preliminary basis for the validity of the copyright and the facts described in the certificate.

• Register within the month. When infringement occurs, the copyright owner is eligible to prosecute legal compensation, lawyers' fees and other expenses. Generally, the maximum of $ 30,000 in the general infringement in statutory compensation, and the maximum compensation of $ 150,000 for intentional infringement. ]
• The successful registration certificate allows the copyright owners to set up files in the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to record it through the blessing of public power. ]

• In today's development, the protection of intellectual property has become particularly important. Especially for some merchants and small owners, familiarity with trademarks and copyright laws can help you avoid you to a certain extent to avoid avoiding you to avoid you from avoiding it. Disputes and lawsuits. If you want to protect your own trademarks and copyrights, it is recommended to find an experienced lawyer to help you apply for registration. If you are already in a intellectual product dispute, you must consult a lawyer immediately to avoidCause greater losses.

• Pingkman cross -border specialized services, such as intellectual property protection, trademark transactions, brand promotion, compliance applications, etc.There is an excellent overseas lawyer team in Pingkman's cross -border, which can help cross -border enterprises significantly reduce the risk of infringement, go out in compliance, and build a brand with peace of mind!