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Copyright

How to File a Copyright Online for Just the $35 charged by the US Copyright Office!

It is CHEAP, only $35,  to file a Copyright, so do not use those sites that charge you $200 to do it! Use the same place THEY do... Ummmmmm The US Copyright Office! It is very easy to do. Watch the videos, pause them if they are too fast. Focus with snake eyed concentration, and read this whole bloody page so you will understand WHY it is you need to do what the Copyright office has you do and THEN you will come to more readily see HOW to do it. They change their website from time to time but is ALWAYS gets EASIER to use, and not harder. So breathe and get it done NOW!

If you have a song and lyrics and it is your creation then you only pay $35 to file a copyright.

If you have more than ONE song/lyrics or ANYTHING, and you want to copyright ALL of them then the price is $55.00. You can copyright 100 or 10,000 for $55.00.

Pretty Please do not call me on the phone with questions about Copyrights because the VERY BEST answers come from the Copyright office. Their number is  202-707-3002 and FIRST hit 1 so tell them you are NOT an employee and then hit 6 for "All other" questions and you will be brought to a very friendly person at the Copyright Office. I give this Copyright info as a free service. I make my living helping folks with Patents.

Trust me, they are AWESOME there! The FAQ answers below are the most commonly asked questions and were answered by Rosemary Branner (YES, the Copyright office workers give their actual names and are just EXTRAORDINARY!, However, if you get a mean person( i have never had a mean one in the Copyright office but I have gotten just a few at the Patent office) just hang up and call in again and you will likely get a very nice person). When you talk to them you will want to "honor" them by FIRST doing your homework and not ask any really goofy or annoying questions, or "blame" them for the way the laws are. They are just like you, they go home every night and tell their sweethearts how their day was. So be NICE!

You have your Formal and legal Copyright when the Copyright office gets THREE things from you...

1) Your application

2) Your payment of $35 or $55

3) Your "work" in the form you wish to sell it. If it is ONLY electronic, and you will ONLY sell it via iTunes or online by downloads you ONLY need those files. If you sell CD's in a store then you need to send them TWO copies of your CD's. Not one, TWO. Do not complain about TWO. It's the law.

When you file a Copyright you can file it for nearly ANYTHING you create.. Music, written work, Microsoft Word Documents, Photographs in almost any format, Excel Files, PDF Documents, Powerpoint, AutoCad, AutoDesk, TXT files, Movies, Zipped Files and more... So what I show you below in the video can pertain to ANY one of those. Just select the right file type as shown.

I show you how to file a Copyright for free below.

And.. If you need a Patent or a Provisional Patent perhaps you will use MY Provisional Patent Video Course!

Follow the videos below to see how to file a Copyright electronically.

First: Go to the US Copyright Office and browse around. You will want to notice the

Taking the Mystery Out of CopyrighteCO Login
eCO

Or just hit the link above to get there.. The website has lots of information and the Copyright process is easy but you must follow specific instructions... This one will cost $35 because I am not Co-Authoring it or asking for anything special... See Fees for great details...

A copyright filed ELECTRONICALLY, as I show takes about 3 months but you have your confirmation IMMEDIATELY. If you file by US Mail it takes 10 months and costs $65.. So they want you to file ELECTRONICALLY as I show below!

Here is CutePDFwriter I mentioned in the video... There is a video below the first one giving details...

Thanks to Erin out in Wyoming for this Guide to Copyrights, Trademarks and Patents in Print and Beyond! Please review it to learn more about the process.

Note from Ava and Lynette about MORE References!

My daughter Ava and I just wanted to send you a quick email to say thanks . Ava is in girl scouts, and is working to earn her inventor badge. Her troop leader told the girls to do some of their own research at home on intellectual property rights first and bring what they learned to the troop, and she found your page https://www.take5inc.com/copyright. Its been so helpful to her we wanted to reach out and thank you. Her troop leader told us that the Girl Scouts actually just came up with a new STEM program and recently introduced a bunch of new patches encouraging girls to explore math and science and I think it's such a great idea. Ava has always excelled in science & math and I'm happy there will finally be more opportunities in the future for girls to pursue those fields.


When I told Ava I was going to email you to thank you, she suggested I let you know about another resource she found, "An Introduction to Intellectual Property Rights" at https://aizmanlaw.com/introduction-to-intellectual-property-rights/ . She thought it would be a good addition to the other copyright resources on your page. I know Ava found it to be helpful in differentiating between trademarks, copyrights, and patents and she plans on sharing it with the troop, so hopefully you find some use for it too.

We have permission from Albert to share the Aizman Law website....

If you need to file a Patent visit the Provisional Patent Video Course.

Music Related Links for my Musician buddies!
If you want to Copyright Music then also visit the following sites: If you do not like them you can get your money back!

SonicProducer 2.0 Fully functional Music Synthesizer and Hottest Music Production Machine, Download Beats!

Video Converter Ultimate. Cheapest one and pretty good because it does a TON and there are no nasty Virus problems! Works for Windows or MAC.

NEED BEATS????

Hip Hop and Rap Beats: These guys have at least FOUR different choices for you to download immediately. 

Luger Beats: You know these guys! When you go to their website they may STILL send you FIVE free untagged AWESOME beats! Check them out! Listen before you buy!

Dr. Drum: The Leader In Fl Studio Hd Video Tutorials & Professional Drum Sounds. Use the Free Trial!

 

USE EXTREME CAUTION searching the internet for the free video converters for Videos have bug and virus problems. Do not use unless you have a VERY VERY good Anti Virus system running! Or, you know how to get rid of them. The REASON these are a very common to have viruses is the folks who want to use video translators or converters are frequently not uuber computer geeks and they will not "notice" the hacks and viruses!

USE EXTREME CAUTION.. Can take hours and be very expensive to remove some of those nasty free things! The above both have free trials, but they are safe because they have a path to upgrade! You might be able to get your FIRST song on the US Copyright site without having to buy the program.

Many programs only like Windows PC's ! If you have a MAC you are in BETTER luck.. The files you create with a MAC are all compatible with the US Copyright office!

Super short and fast Video

How To Copyright Your Song or Music

for $35 using Copyright.gov.. The OFFICIAL government branch for Copyrights.

Please "like" the videos if they help you and so that others may find them!

This video is a bit longer and gives details no matter what you want to Copyright!

Please "like" the videos if they help you and so that others may find them!

Here is a video showing how to use Cute Writer for Windows to create a PDF format that the Copyright Office will love. Patents at the USPTO and Copyrights need the same format so do not fret that I mention patents in the video below:

Please "like" the videos if they help you and so that others may find them!

If you have a MAC you ONLY need to select save in PDF format from any application and it will be properly formatted for the Copyright Office.. If you need a video I have one below for you...

Patents at the USPTO and Copyrights need the same format so do not fret that I mention patents in the video below:

Please "like" the videos if they help you and so that others may find them!

For Software Developers..
Software developers do not want anyone pirating their work either and of course want the ability to stop piracy as swiftly as possible. That’s where the U.S. copyright law comes into play. Anything you create, including computer programs, immediately receives copyright protection when it’s fixed in a tangible format. This tangible format is created when you save your code into a computer file. Formal registration with the U.S. Copyright Office grants a much broader range of protections. We have show how that is done above. It is very similar to any copyrighting task!

Tangible Format
To work with the Copyright office you will product your program in a tangible format that is accepted by the Copyright Office. For registration purposes, you must submit source code -- not compiled programs. To do this simply submit the first and last 25 pages -- roughly the first and last 1,000 lines of code -- with your registration. That's it!
 
Registration of Code
Because you submit computer programs in printed form, the Copyright Office requires that your registration be handled as if it were a literary work, registering yourself or your company as the author as I have shown above. If you ALSO wish to also copyright the on-screen user interfaces of your work then, you may register the program in addition as a graphic work or, if it produces video, an audiovisual work. In this case, list “computer program” as the creator of the image. This process provides copyright to all on-screen images the program creates rather than single screen grabs of each portion you wish to protect.
 
Public Record and Trade Secrets
The deposit -- your hard-copy printout of your source code -- you submit as part of the registration process is kept by the U.S. Library of Congress. Because of this, it’s public record, and other software developers can refer to it. Because of the sensitive nature of code, the Copyright Office allows you to block out sensitive portions of the program with a black pen or by swapping out characters for "XXXXXX" or blank spaces. If you must omit large portions of the code, insert notes that clarify the number of lines and characters removed from the deposit and attribute the omission to trade secrets or confidential material.
 
Software Updates
As copyright holder, you own the exclusive rights to make improvements and updates on your original copyrighted work. While developing and marketing improved versions of software is a time-honored business model, you’ll need to approach copyright registration of subsequent versions carefully to maintain the strongest copyright. The Copyright Office requires that you register a new copyright for each updated version of your program, even if the adaptations may be outside the 2,000 lines of code you used in your deposit. Take this seriously as getting in to battle with an infringer who copies your "new" code that you did not take time to copyright might just win. The cost to copyright is small.. Call it cheap insurance...
 

Need to Patent your invention?

Here is where you buy the Provisional Patent Video Course

end.. How to copyright electronically

Gift from Amanda and Danielle:

A gift from Amanda and 11 year old Danielle to help you learn even more about the Intellectual Property process is this very nice reference. 

Amanda told me this:

My little sister, Danielle, who is 11 has been voluntarily helping me do some research and she is loving it. She keeps saying that when she grows up she wants to study copyright law so she is able to help people just like me (I thought that was adorable!).

How to Trademark electronically

NO... You do NOT have to be an attorney to file one of these!!
 
Call the USPTO's Trademark Assistance Center at 800-786-9199 and hit 1 to get to them on the phone. Very helpful folks!
 
A Trademark will cost you $325 using the TEAS form. It is simple to use and you can find it the
TEAS at bottom here:
 
There is also a TEAS+ form that is $275 but if you make an error they have a $50 fine... They BOTH do the exact same thing!
 
When you finish your submission and they take your $325 you will get an 8 digit Serial Number THEN... it will take 12 to 13 months to approve you submission. THEN you will bet your paper Certificate of Registration!
 
Note: When you write your term like CokeTM with the TM the TM is a claim of ownership. You do NOT put TM on your mark.
 
Here is a SPECIMEN for a Coke Submission..
coke-example.png
 
Search trademarks...
 
 

FAQ for Copyrights!

 
Q-1) I have the songs and the words. Do I copyright both?
A-1) YES you may, and if you do them TOGETHER you only pay $35.
 
Q-2) I have a bunch of songs. How do I put them together and what will the cost be?
A-2) ZIP them up and the cost is $55.
 
Q-3) I have the lyrics over an existing beat. Do I Copyright BOTH?
A-3) You ONLY get to copyright what YOU created. The beat is owned by OTHERS but you can STILL copyright your lyrics. Weird Al Yankovich copyrights his silly lyrics over songs, beats, we all know. This is how he makes money.
 
Q-4) Does publishing on YouTube "count" as publishing?
A-4) No, because it is not a work for sale. You are giving it away in that public domain venue. You can still copyright it.
 
Q-5) How long do I have to wait to sell my songs after copyrighting?
A-5) Two milliseconds if you filed online and sell as downloadable format...  If you want to sell media you can hold in your hand, like a CD, then you must get TWO copies of your work to the Copyright office. Soooo.

You have your Formal and legal Copyright when the Copyright office gets THREE things from you...

1) Your application

2) Your payment of $35 or $55

3) Your "work" in the form you wish to sell it. If it is ONLY electronic, and you will ONLY sell it via iTunes or online by downloads you ONLY need those files. If you sell CD's in a store then you need to send them TWO copies of your CD's. Not one, TWO. Do not complain about TWO. It's the law.

Q-6) How long does my Copyright last?
A-6) Your entire lifetime PLUS 70 years! Pretty cool eh! This is how Yoko Ono makes money, from the sale of the rights to the musig of her Beatle husband who died...
 
Q-7) Can I copyright a video, or music video?
A-7) YES, for ONE it is $35.
 
Q-8) How do I "Classify" my work?
A-8) You get to make that choice. Say you are Taylor Swift. Is her music that yacks on Ex-Boyfriends "Poetry" or "Lyrics" or"Literary Work"? She can call it ANYTHING she wishes and will be protected no matter WHAT she calls it. Generally, if it is poetry then call it "Literary Work" and if it is musical then call it "Work of Performing Art". In the end do not sweat it.
 
Q-9) When can I sue someone for using my work I have copyrighted???
A-9)The VERY BEST SURPRISE is in this video by Lorenzo! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehqIn2i0zHU
You will discover if you have WRITTEN DOWN, or RECORDED (putting your music in tangible form) your work that you own the Copyright for your entire life PLUS 70 years after you die. You have the rights to your music!

You STILL NEED to register.. the benefits of copyright registration are that you can bring a lawsuit against an infringer ONLY AFTER you register your music. GOT IT? AFTER you register it you can file a lawsuit.

 
Q-10) Can I trust what I read here?
A-10) I strive to do my very best and my goal is to protect you from the dirtbags who rip off folks for things that you can easily do yourself. If you find an error then let me know and I will correct it. I put this stuff here because many of the folks, where I make my living, are focused on Patents and SOMETIMES they have questions on Copyrights. As such I provide this as a service to help them out so they do not get taken advantage of.
 

If you like what you read then please make a comment in the YouTube Videos above or make comments in a review section. If you are feeling REALLY REALLY generous then feel free send me a monetary "gift" by clicking here! Certainly appreciated if you are the next hottest artist and you found this website useful in your first struggling times...

I ask you to make comments and "LIKES" on YouTube because as more comments are added to YouTube then more folks who need just what YOU needed will be able to FIND the information! And, it is just good Karma!