Gap in Termination Provisions; Inquiry, 27248-27249 [2010-11619]

Agencies

• Library of Congress
• Copyright Office
• Copyright Office, Library of Congress

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 93 (Friday, May 14, 2010)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 27248-27249]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-11619]


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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Copyright Office

37 CFR Part 201


Gap in Termination Provisions; Inquiry

AGENCY: Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Notice of public inquiry; request for comments; extension of 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Copyright Office is extending the time in which reply 
comments may be filed on the topic of the application of Title 17 to 
the termination of certain grants of transfers or licenses of 
copyright, specifically those for which execution of the grant occurred 
prior to January 1, 1978 and creation of the work occurred on or after 
January 1, 1978.

DATES: The comment period for initial comments on the Notice of Inquiry 
and Requests for Comments published on March 29, 2010 (75 FR 15390) 
closed on April 30, 2010. Reply comments are due on or before May 21, 
2010.

ADDRESSES: The Copyright Office strongly prefers that comments be 
submitted electronically. A comment page containing a comment form is 
posted on the Copyright Office Web site at https://www.copyright.gov/docs/termination. The Web site interface requires submitters to 
complete a form specifying name and organization, as applicable, and to 
upload comments as an attachment via a browse button. To meet 
accessibility standards, all comments must be uploaded in a single file 
in either the Adobe Portable Document File (PDF) format that contains 
searchable, accessible text (not an image); Microsoft Word; 
WordPerfect; Rich Text Format (RTF); or ASCII text file format (not a 
scanned document). The maximum file size is 6 megabytes (MB). The name 
of the submitter and organization should appear on both the form and 
the face of the comments. All comments will be posted publicly on the 
Copyright Office web site exactly as they are received, along with 
names and organizations. If electronic submission of comments is not 
feasible, please contact the Copyright Office at 202-707-1027 for 
special instructions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Maria Pallante, Associate Register, 
Policy and International Affairs, by telephone at 202-707-1027 or by 
electronic mail at mpall@loc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The United States Copyright Office is 
extending the reply comment period for commenting on the topic of the 
application of Title 17 to the termination of certain grants of 
transfers or licenses of copyright, specifically those for which 
execution of the grant occurred prior to January 1, 1978 and creation 
of the work occurred on or after January 1, 1978. This action is being 
taken in order to allow interested parties adequate time to give input 
on this important issue. Reply comments are due by 5 p.m. on May 21, 
2010.

Subject of Inquiry

    The Copyright Office seeks comment on the question of whether and 
how Title 17 provides a termination right to authors (and other persons 
specified by statute) when the grant was made prior to 1978 and the 
work was created on or after January 1, 1978. For purposes of 
illustration, please note the following examples:

    Example 1:  A composer signed an agreement with a music 
publisher in 1977 transferring the copyrights to future musical 
compositions pursuant to a negotiated fee schedule. She created 
numerous compositions under the agreement between 1978 and 1983, 
some of which were subsequently published by the publisher-
transferee. Several of these achieved immediate popular success and 
have been economically viable ever since. The original contract has 
not been amended or superseded.
    Example 2:  A writer signed an agreement with a book publisher 
in 1977 to deliver a work of nonfiction. The work was completed and 
delivered on time in 1979 and was published in 1980. The book's 
initial print run sold out slowly, but because the author's 
subsequent works were critically acclaimed, it was released with an 
updated cover last year and is now a best seller. The rights 
remained with the publisher all along and the original royalty 
structure continues to apply.

Questions

    In order to better understand the application of sections 304(c), 
304(d) and 203 to the grants of transfers and licenses discussed above, 
the Copyright Office seeks comments as follows:
    A. Experience. Please describe any experience you have in 
exercising or negotiating termination rights for pre-1978 grants of 
transfers or licenses for

[[Page 27249]]

works that were created on or after January 1, 1978.
    B. Interpretation. Are the grants of transfers or licenses 
discussed above terminable under Title 17 as currently codified? If so, 
under which provision? What is the basis for your determination? Are 
there state or federal laws other than copyright that are relevant? Is 
delivery of the work by the grantor to the grantee relevant to the 
question of termination? Is publication relevant?
    C. Recommendations. Do you have any recommendations with respect to 
the grants of transfers or licenses illustrated above?
    D. Other Issues. Are there other issues with respect to the 
application or exercise of termination provisions that you would like 
to bring to our attention for future consideration?

    Dated: May 11, 2010.
Maria Pallante,
Associate Register for Policy & International Affairs, U.S. Copyright 
Office.
[FR Doc. 2010-11619 Filed 5-13-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1410-30-P