Over One Million Card Catalog Records Digitized in Copyright Public Records System Pilot

"This summer, the Copyright Office reached a new milestone in our modernization efforts: surpassing one million card catalog records digitized with searchable metadata and added to the Office’s Copyright Public Records System (CPRS) pilot. As the number of card catalog entries in CPRS continues to grow, now is a good time to revisit the Office’s digitization efforts and explain how to read a registration application card.

Researchers from all over the country and the globe rely on the public record the Office maintains and manages. The Copyright Reading Room oversees approximately thirty-five million items, amounting to the most complete and accurate collection of copyright records of ownership in the world. From researching ownership to determine if a work is in the public domain or for licensing purposes, to identifying unpublished works by a particular artist, to investigating whether your ancestors registered any creative works during their lifetime, the Office maintains the record of creative endeavors in the United States.

What is CPRS?

CPRS is a pilot running in parallel to our legacy Copyright Public Catalog, and it will eventually become the official public record of copyright information in the United States.¹ CPRS uses a more powerful search engine than the Public Catalog, provides easy filtering capabilities, and follows user-centered design principles that align with the Office’s expanding Enterprise Copyright System (ECS). Users can easily conduct searches in CPRS by keyword, name, and title and conduct advanced searches using detailed registration and recordation filters.

Users can visit CPRS and begin searching the Office’s records today!.."
Copyright Public Records 

Copyright and State Sovereign Immunity

"Dear Chairman Leahy and Ranking Member Tillis

On behalf of the United States Copyright Office, I am pleased to deliver a copy of a report entitled Copyright and State Sovereign Immunity, which is available to the public on the Office’s website.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Allen v. Cooper, you requested that the Copyright Office undertake a study to determine whether, consistent with the Court’s analysis, Congress could legislatively abrogate state sovereign immunity to suits in federal court for damages for copyright infringement.

In response to your request, the Office solicited the views of interested stakeholders and held round tables to amplify the record. The Office received comments from many copyright owners who believed that their works had been infringed by state entities. A number of state entities provided information about their policies on copyright, and views regarding allegations of infringement and the possible effect of abrogation on their operations. The Office also conducted extensive research into the legal standards governing abrogation in the context of copyright infringement. 2

After carefully evaluating the information provided, the Office can report that the number of allegations of state infringement provided in the course of this study is substantially greater than the number Congress considered when it adopted its prior abrogation legislation, and greater than the evidence found insufficient in prior intellectual property cases. Although few of the infringement allegations provided to the Office were adjudicated on the merits, the evidence indicates that state infringement represents a legitimate concern for copyright owners. Given the demands of the current legal standard, however, and some ambiguity in its application, we cannot conclude with certainty that even the current more robust record would be found sufficient to meet the constitutional test for abrogation.

The Office nevertheless continues to believe that infringement by state entities is an issue worthy of congressional action. n. While many such entities take care to respect copyright, and engage in activities likely to fall under copyright exceptions, others may use copyrighted works for a variety of market substituting purposes. There would seem to be little justification for immunizing these types of entities from damages if they intentionally engage in the same conduct for which a private party could be held liable. Therefore, if Congress decides not to proceed with abrogation legislation, the Office would support consideration of alternative approaches to address this issue.."
Copyright and state sovereign 

Copyright Office Launches Copyright Public Records System Pilot

"Today, the U.S. Copyright Office launched a new Copyright Public Records System (CPRS) pilot to the public. The new portal will provide access to the same copyright records for both registration and recordation data that exist in the Copyright Public Catalog but with enhanced search capabilities and improved interfaces for internal and external users. With these enhancements, users should have an easier time finding the exact records they need. The CPRS pilot is also the second Enterprise Copyright System module to launch. While the first module, the electronic recordation system pilot, was released to a limited external audience, the CPRS pilot is available to the entire public.

The public can access the new CPRS pilot at publicrecords.copyright.gov and provide feedback on their experience using the feedback link at the bottom of the page. For any questions or other comments, please email publicrecords@copyright.gov.

The pilot is designed to run concurrently with the Copyright Public Catalog—available at cocatalog.loc.gov. During the pilot, the Copyright Public Catalog will remain the official source of authoritative records. The CPRS pilot will continue to evolve after the public release. Developers and Copyright Office staff are working on including the ability to download and print search results and the ability for users to see their recent searches and records. While the current CPRS pilot contains records from 1978 through the present, the Office is considering migrating other public records to the CPRS.

To learn more about the CPRS, watch the June 2020 copyright modernization webinar on the Copyright Office website or YouTube channel. The CPRS is also accompanied by a tutorial to assist new users..."
Copyright 

Public Draft for the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices

"

Acting Register Karyn Temple Claggett has released a revised draft of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition. This draft is the first update to the Compendium since it was released in December 2014. Public comments on this draft may be submitted from June 1, 2017, to June 30, 2017 using the comment box below.

The draft will become effective on July 3, 2017. Until then, the December 2014 version of the Compendium remains in effect..."

Copyrights

Six Steps to Protect Your Brand

"A trademark is an essential part of a brand, helping to distinguish a business’s unique products and services from what another business offers. It can be a word, slogan, logo, symbol, design or even a sound. The following six steps from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) provide a useful guideline on what to consider before registering a trademark and during the application process. Have an invention? Make sure to protect that too..."
Trademarks

Call the Copyright Office Toll Free -1-877-476-0778
"When you call the U.S. Copyright Office on its toll-free line, you will be given three choices. To request publications or get recorded information about copyright, press 1. To obtain technical support for online registration, press 2. To speak to an information specialist about copyright or registration requirements, press 0."