Copyright Office 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Copyright Office is amending its regulations to update the eligibility requirements for its application forms to reflect recent technical updates. The final rule clarifies that the Single Application may be used to register one work that is created and solely owned by one author and is not a work made for hire. It also confirms that this application may be used to register one sound recording and one musical work, literary work, or dramatic work, notwithstanding the fact that a sound recording and the work embodied in that recording are separate works. The final rule further clarifies the eligibility requirements for the Standard Application, which may be used to register certain works that are not eligible for the Single Application. It updates the eligibility requirements for the paper applications of both the Single Application and Standard Application by clarifying that these forms may be certified with a typed, printed, or handwritten signature, and by eliminating the ``short form'' version of these forms. The rule also makes several technical amendments to the regulations governing preregistration, mask works, vessel designs, the unit of publication registration option, and the group registration option for database updates.

The U.S. Copyright Office is proposing to create a new group registration option for certain types of literary works. To qualify for this option, each work must contain at least 100 but no more than 17,500 words. The works must be created by the same individual, and that individual must be named as the copyright claimant for each work. The works must all be published online within a three-calendar-month period. If these requirements have been met, the applicant may submit up to 50 works with one application and one filing fee. The applicant must complete the online application designated for a ``literary work'' and upload a digital copy of each work. The Office will examine each work to determine if it contains a sufficient amount of creative authorship, and if the Office registers the claim, the registration will cover each work as a separate work of authorship. The Office invites comment on this proposal.

The U.S. Copyright Office is amending its regulations governing the group registration options for newsletters and serials. With respect to group newsletters, the final rule amends the definition of ``newsletter,'' eliminating the requirement that each issue must be a work made for hire, and the provision stating that group newsletter claims must be received within three months after publication. Under the final rule, newsletter publishers now should register their issues with the online application and upload a digital copy of each issue through the electronic registration system instead of submitting them in a physical form. With respect to group serials, the final rule clarifies that serials governed by the rule generally must be published at intervals of a week or longer, and that the publication dates provided in the application need not match the dates appearing on the issues themselves. In addition, the rule phases out the paper application for group serials and the submission of physical copies. Beginning one year after the rule goes into effect, serial publishers will be required to use the online application for group serials and to upload a digital copy of each issue, rather than submitting them in a physical form. The final rule updates the regulations for both newsletters and serials by confirming that publishers do not need to provide the Library of Congress with complimentary subscriptions to or microfilm of each issue as a condition for registering their works with the Office, but newsletter and serial issues that are submitted for purposes of registration will no longer satisfy the mandatory deposit requirement. Publishers will be expected to separately provide the Library with two complimentary subscriptions if the newsletter or serial is published in the United States in a physical format (unless the publisher is informed that the publication is not needed for the Library's collections). If the newsletter or serial is published solely in electronic form, the publisher will remain exempt from mandatory deposit unless the Office issues a formal demand for copies of that publication.

The U.S. Copyright Office is building a new registration system to meet the demands of the digital age. As the Office develops a new technological infrastructure for this system, it is considering several legal and policy changes to improve user experience, increase Office efficiency, and decrease processing times. The Office is seeking public comment to inform its decisions on how to improve the regulations and practices related to the registration of copyright claims.

The U.S. Copyright Office is issuing a notice of inquiry regarding the Classics Protection and Access Act, title II of the recently enacted Orrin G. Hatch-Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act. In connection with the establishment of federal remedies for unauthorized uses of sound recordings fixed before February 15, 1972 (``Pre-1972 Sound Recordings''), Congress also established an exception for certain noncommercial uses of Pre-1972 Sound Recordings that are not being commercially exploited. To qualify for this exemption, a user must file a notice of noncommercial use after conducting a good faith, reasonable search to determine whether the Pre-1972 Sound Recording is being commercially exploited, and the rights owner of the sound recording must not object to the use within 90 days. To promulgate the regulations required by the new statute, the Office is soliciting comments regarding specific steps that a user should take to demonstrate she has made a good faith, reasonable search. The Office also solicits comments regarding the filing requirements for the user to submit a notice of noncommercial use and for a rights owner to submit a notice objecting to such use.

The Copyright Office is proposing to establish a regulation regarding its procedures for closing out royalty payments accounts under section 1005, and updating its regulations governing online payment procedures for cable, satellite, and digital audio recording technology (``DART'') statements of account to no longer require that payments be made in a single lump sum. These amendments are intended to improve the efficiency of the Copyright Office's Licensing Division operations.

The U.S. Copyright Office is extending the deadline for the submission of written comments in response to its May 17, 2018 notice of proposed rulemaking regarding amendments to its regulation governing the group registration option for serials.

The United States Copyright Office is extending the deadlines for the submission of written comments in response to its December 1, 2017 notice of proposed rulemaking concerning the royalty reporting practices of cable operators under section 111 and proposed revisions to the Statement of Account forms, and on proposed amendments to the Statement of Account filing requirements.

The Copyright Office is proposing the adoption of a new fee schedule. The proposed fees would help the Office recover a significant part, though not the whole, of its costs. The Office is providing an opportunity to the public to comment on the proposed changes before it submits the fee schedule to Congress.

The U.S. Copyright Office is proposing to update its regulation governing the group registration option for newsletters, which are defined in part as a class of serials that are published at least two days each week. The proposed rule would make a number of changes to reflect current Office practices, promote efficiency of the registration process, and encourage broader participation in the registration system by reducing the burden on applicants. Specifically, the proposed rule would require applicants to file an online application, rather than a paper application, and upload a complete digital copy of each issue through the electronic registration system instead of submitting them in physical form. The proposed rule would amend the definition of ``newsletter,'' and eliminate the requirement that each issue must be a work made for hire and the requirement that the applicants submit their claims within a certain period of time. In addition, the proposed rule would remove the requirement that the claimant provide the Library with complimentary subscriptions to or microfilm of the newsletter as a condition for using the group registration option. Under the proposed rule, however, newsletter publishers would remain subject to the mandatory deposit requirement. Specifically, if the newsletter is published in the United States in a physical format, the publisher must provide the Library with two complimentary subscriptions to the newsletter, unless it is informed that the newsletter is not needed for the Library's collections. Newsletters published only in electronic form would continue to be subject to the general, existing on-demand mandatory deposit regime for electronic serials. The Office invites public comment on these proposed changes.

Section 407 of the Copyright Act requires the mandatory deposit with the Copyright Office (``Office'') of all works published in the United States, within three months of publication, for use by the Library of Congress (``Library''). The Office is allowed to exclude certain classes of works from this requirement. In a 2010 interim rule, the Office codified its longstanding practice of excluding from the mandatory deposit requirements all electronic works that are not otherwise available in a physical format (i.e., ``electronic works published in the United States and available only online.''). The 2010 interim rule created one exception to this general rule for electronic- only serials, which are subject to mandatory deposit, if they are published in the United States and if they are affirmatively demanded by the Office. On May 17, 2016, the Office published a Notice of Inquiry seeking public comment on potential regulatory changes that would make the interim rule final and would make electronic-only books and sound recordings subject to mandatory deposit requirements by way of the same demand process. Based on the responses to the NOI and input from the Library, the Office proposes revising its regulations to make the interim rule final, and to make electronic-only books published in the United States subject to the mandatory deposit requirements if they are affirmatively demanded by the Office. The proposed rule does not address mandatory deposit of electronic-only sound recordings.

The United States Copyright Office will be holding public hearings as part of the seventh triennial rulemaking proceeding under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (``DMCA'') concerning possible exemptions to the DMCA's prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The public hearings will be held in April 2018 in Washington, DC and Los Angeles. Parties interested in testifying at the public hearings are invited to submit requests to testify pursuant to the instructions set forth below.

The United States Copyright Office is issuing a final rule, amending regulations that govern the deposit requirements for certain types of literary works and musical compositions. The final rule is adopted as proposed in the notice of proposed rulemaking, though the Office provides some clarification regarding the rule's application.