4. 1976 Copyright Act
Eliminated any formal registration requirements
for a copyright
Included an extension of the duration of the
copyright protection
Led to a proliferation in orphan works
1976
5. Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act
Extended copyrights for an additional 20 years,
so that it lasts for the life span of the creator and
an additional 70 years after their death
Allowed libraries and archives to use a work
without permission if the work is not otherwise
being used for commercial exploitation and not
available at a reasonable price
1998
6. Public Domain Enhancement Act
Introduced in House of Representatives in 2003
Reintroduced in 2005
Did not pass
Would have released some orphan works into the
public domain if the copyright owners did not
renew their copyright 50 years after the work
was first released and then every 10 years after
2003 2005
7. Copyright Office Orphan Works Study
Issued a Notice of Inquiry and asked the public
to submit comments about orphan works
Conducted 3 roundtable discussions
Issued report in January of 2006
Concluded that orphan works are an issue that
needs to be dealt with legislatively
2005
8. Legislation
Orphan Works Act of 2006 was introduced in
the House
Provided a limitation on remedies for when the
copyright holder cannot be found
Bill was withdrawn in September 2006
2006
9. Legislation
In 2008 the Orphan Works Act was introduced
in the House and the Shawn Bentley Orphan
Act was introduced in the Senate
Both called for similar things
Neither were passed before the end of the
session, nor were they reintroduced in the next
session
2008
10. Book Search Settlement
Current settlement allows Google to sell orphan
works
If passed, everyone would be able to access
previously untouchable orphan works, but
Google would have a monopoly and complete
control over all orphan works
2009
16. Legislation
- Lawrence Lessig, “Little Orphan Artworks”
17. Berne Convention
for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works
Signed in 1886 by the most prominent countries
of the time
Stipulates that copyright ownership must be
automatic (meaning it should not involve
registration)
18. U.K. Orphan Works Model
The Treasury Department published a report in
2005 about Intellectual Property
Recommended that the UK Intellectual
Property Office should clearly define what
qualifies as a “reasonable search”
Should also established voluntary register of
copyright
19. Canadian Copyright Act
The Canadian Copyright Board examines a
user’s search process and issues a non-exclusive
copyright license and collects a licensing fee that
is sent to the relevant creator’s collecting society
If the artist or author is not traced or identified
within 5 years, the fee can be used by the
collecting society for the benefit of its general
membership
