artbizbuz
…dedicated to providing tips and ideas for art marketing in the digital world
Registering Artworks
Artwork Copyright & Marketing Strategy
Sharing of an artwork image is essential element of marketing, but shared images must be protected: sometimes this involves registering your art with the copyright office. For example, artwork files presented digitally to potential business clients are most vulnerable for plagiarism. Artwork presented on the internet can be downloaded and misused and therefore registering your copyright might be a good idea.
In general, copyright registration of your artwork is a legal formality intended to make a public record of the basic facts of your art copyright.
It is important to note that no publication or registration or other action in the Copyright Office is required to secure copyright for your original art – protection is automatic at the point of creation. Copyright legislation protects the physical expression of your art – not the concept or idea behind it. So as soon as the art is given physical form, it is protected by copyright – even an unpublished (or privately held) artwork is protected!
So, registration is not a condition of copyright protection for your art, but you need to determine how or if registration fits your marketing strategy.
Even though registration is not a requirement for protection of your art, the copyright law provides several inducements or advantages to encourage art copyright owners to make registration. Among these advantages are the following:
* Registration of the artwork establishes a public record of the copyright claim.
* It might make business sense, because before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration is necessary for works of U.S. origin.
* If made before or within 5 years of publication, artwork registration will establish prima facie evidence in court of the validity of the art copyright and of the facts stated in the certificate.
* If registration of the artwork is made within 3 months after publication of the work or prior to an infringement of the work, statutory damages and attorney’s fees will be available to the copyright owner in court actions. Otherwise, only an award of actual damages and profits is available to the copyright owner.
* Artwork Registration allows the artist, as owner of the copyright, to record the registration with the U. S. Customs Service for protection against the importation of infringing copies.
* Art registration may be made at any time within the life of the copyright. Unlike the law before 1978, when a work has been registered in unpublished form, it is not necessary to make another registration when the work becomes published, although the copyright owner may register the published edition – for example, if licensed.