Copyright Timeline

By: Nolan Wurm

Early History

There work books written in the 15th century but they were handwritten and they were extremely expensive. But the book was not protected and neither was the author.

15th century

In the mid 15th century Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press that made books less expensive and made public papers and books available for the public.

1662

There were printing presses almost everywhere in 1662 so authorities in England thought that they should control what's in the books. The books were censored for bad stuff about the church and other bad stuff. They also required to deposit a copy of the book to get it licensed.

1710

There was the first laws passed for protecting the rights of authors and their books. This law also created a public domain for literature.

1783

The first state to pass a copyright law entitlement is Connecticut. It passed a Act of Encouragement of literature and genius.

1787

James Madison had the Constitution revised to secure a copyright law for a limited time.

1789

The first federal bill relating to copyrights was presented to the first Congress.

1790

The first President signed the first copyright bill into the new Constitution. The thing this that were protected were maps books and charts.

1790

The first book that was protected was The Philadelphia Spelling Book. It was also the first piece of work to be protected.

1802

The Copyright Act was amended to extend protection to "historical and other prints" and to require that copyright notices be printed on protected works.

1831

Musical compositions were allowed to be copyright protected. Up to 14 years in a renewal term.

1856

Copyright protection was given to dramatic works of art.

1865

Photographs and photographic negatives were added to the list of works protected by copyright.

1870

This year marks the second revision of the copyright law. Art was added along with author translating and deposit registration.

1891

A new copyright Act was signed into law. This was called the International Copyright Act. This was signed into law for international copyright.

1894

In this year the first motion picture was registered for protection of copyright. It was a man sneezing in the camera.

1895

President Grover Cleveland signed the Printing Act of 1895, centralizing the printing of government documents in the Government Printing Office and prohibiting the copyrighting of any Government publication.

1897

The Act of January 6, 1897 protected music against unauthorized public performance. The purpose of this act was to prohibit copyrighted materials from public performance without consent.

1897

The Copyright Office is established as a separate department of the Library of Congress and the position of Register of Copyrights is created.

1909

The third general revision of the copyright act became effective on July 1, 1909. This law broadens the subject matter of copyright to include "all the writings of an author" and extends the renewal term from 14 to 28 years.

1912

The Townsend Amendment of 1912 results in motion pictures, previously registered as photographs, being specifically added to the categories of protected works.

1914

President Wilson proclaimed U.S. adherence to the Buenos Aires Copyright Convention of 1910, establishing convention protection between the United States and certain Latin American nations.

1953

Recording and performing rights are extended to nondramatic literary works. These would include poetry, novels, and textbooks.

1955

his marks the effective date that the U.S. became a member nation of the Universal Copyright Convention, as signed at Geneva, Switzerland on September 6, 1952. Dwight Eisenhower was president during this time.

1962

Beginning in 1962, Congress enacted the first of a series of nine special acts extending the renewal term for existing works. The effect of these laws was to extend to December 31, 1976, the renewal term of all works scheduled to expire between September 19, 1962, and December 31, 1976. John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson were presidents during this time.

1972

This marks the effective date of an act extending limited copyright protection to sound recordings fixed and first published on or after this date. Richard Nixon was president during this time.

1976

President Ford signed the fourth general revision of the copyright law.

1978

This marks the effective date of principal provisions of the 1976 copyright law. The term of protection for works created on or after this date consists of the life of the author and 50 years after the author's death. Numerous other provisions modernized the law.

1980

The copyright law was amended regarding computer programs. The Computer Software Act of 1980 defines computer programs and clarifies the extent of protection afforded computer software.

1989

United States adhered to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works

1990

The Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act was passed, providing copyright protection for architectural works.

1992

Renewal registration became optional. Works copyrighted between January 1, 1964, and December 31, 1977 were automatically renewed even if registration not made.

1998

The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act extended the term of copyright protection for most works to the life of the author plus 70 years after the author's death.

1998

On this date, President Clinton signed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, designed to implement the treaties signed in December 1996 at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Geneva conference. Highlights of the act include: limiting certain online infringement liability for Internet service providers; creating an exemption permitting a temporary reproduction of a computer program made by activating a computer in the course of maintenance or repair; clarifying the policy role of the Copyright Office; and creating a form of protection for vessel 

2002

The Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act of 2002 provided for the use of copyrighted works by accredited nonprofit educational institutions in distance education. President Bush signed this act into law.

THE END www.Copyright.gov