When you submit a song for copyright, you are doing much more than merely proving the date of submission of your art. While the staff at the copyright office is not sitting around listening to every song to determine whether they have heard it before, registration is proof of a valid copyright. When you write or record your song, theoretically, you have created it and you therefore own the copyright. Copyright arises upon creation of the work in a tangible medium.
By submitting a song to the copyright office, you are protecting your music by recognizing the date of its creation. You are also gaining substantial additional benefits.
It is significant to note that certain aspects of your song can never be protected through copyright. These aspects consist of:
* Chord developments
* The overall idea or theory of your song
* A title or short catchphrase
On the other hand, melodies and lyrics are protected under copyright laws.
You may or may not be aware that there are several do-it-yourself copyright methods that songwriters occasionally like to use. Please note: we do not endorse these methods.
The most popular of these methods is entitled the “Poor Man’s Copyright.” This entails mailing a recording of your song to yourself via certified mail and keeping the envelope sealed after delivery. Allegedly, the postmark on the envelope will date your music and therefore protect your creation if someone comes along after that and attempts to steal it.
The modern version of this idea entails uploading your song to YouTube or another time-stamped social media channel. The idea here is that your music is dated and therefore sheltered by the time stamp on the social media site.
Our warning to you with regard to these methods is DON’T DO IT! These concepts may make sense to you, but if it ever comes down to a court battle, you want your music appropriately and unequivocally registered with the copyright office, particularly considering the fact that it’s really not that costly. It is currently $35 if you submit a whole collection of songs at one time in electronic format.
Proving your date of creation is only one small benefit of copyright registration. Copyright registration confers a public record of the copyright claim—no one can claim the “I didn’t know” defense; there is an assumption of the validity of your copyright ownership; availability of statutory damages and attorney’s fees; international protection of your material; and perhaps most importantly, you can only file a lawsuit to enforce your rights if the copyright is registered. As you can see, having the “Poor Man’s Copyright” is nothing without the registration.
Taking the proper means to guard your music is something all musicians should do as they move forward with their careers.
Now that you have an understanding of how to copyright your music, move forward with the process so you can release your music to the multitudes and have it be heard! Find out how we can help mchattielaw.com