U.S. Code » Title 17 » Chapter CHAPTER 3— DURATION OF COPYRIGHT

17 U.S.C. § 303

Duration of copyright: Works created but not published or copyrighted before January 1, 1978

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(a) Copyright in a work created before January 1, 1978, but not theretofore in the public domain or copyrighted, subsists from January 1, 1978, and endures for the term provided by section 302. In no case, however, shall the term of copyright in such a work expire before December 31, 2002; and, if the work is published on or before December 31, 2002, the term of copyright shall not expire before December 31, 2047.(b) The distribution before January 1, 1978, of a phonorecord shall not for any purpose constitute a publication of any musical work, dramatic work, or literary work embodied therein.(Pub. L. 94–553, title I, § 101, Oct. 19, 1976, 90 Stat. 2573; Pub. L. 105–80, § 11, Nov. 13, 1997, 111 Stat. 1534; Pub. L. 105–298, title I, § 102(c), Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2827; Pub. L. 111–295, § 5(a), Dec. 9, 2010, 124 Stat. 3181.)Historical and Revision Noteshouse report no. 94–1476

Theoretically, at least, the legal impact of section 303 would be far reaching. Under it, every “original work of authorship” fixed in tangible form that is in existence would be given statutory copyright protection as long as the work is not in the public domain in this country. The vast majority of these works consist of private material that no one is interested in protecting or infringing, but section 303 would still have practical effects for a prodigious body of material already in existence.

Looked at another way, however, section 303 would have a genuinely restrictive effect. Its basic purpose is to substitute statutory for common law copyright for everything now protected at common law, and to substitute reasonable time limits for the perpetual protection now available. In general, the substituted time limits are those applicable to works created after the effective date of the law [Jan. 1, 1978]; for example, an unpublished work written in 1945 whose author dies in 1980 would be protected under the statute from the effective date [Jan. 1, 1978] through 2030 (50 years after the author’s death).

A special problem under this provision is what to do with works whose ordinary statutory terms will have expired or will be nearing expiration on the effective date [Jan. 1, 1978]. The committee believes that a provision taking away subsisting common law rights and substituting statutory rights for a reasonable period is fully in harmony with the constitutional requirements of due process, but it is necessary to fix a “reasonable period” for this purpose. Section 303 provides that under no circumstances would copyright protection expire before December 31, 2002, and also attempts to encourage publication by providing 25 years more protection (through 2027) if the work were published before the end of 2002.

Editorial NotesAmendments

2010—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 111–295 substituted “any musical work, dramatic work, or literary work” for “the musical work”.

1998—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105–298 substituted “December 31, 2047” for “December 31, 2027” in second sentence.

1997—Pub. L. 105–80 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 28 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1978–2022 · leading case: Michael Skidmore v. Led Zeppelin, 905 F.3d 1116 (9th Cir. 2018).
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Michael Skidmore v. Led Zeppelin, 905 F.3d 1116 (9th Cir. 2018). · cites it 2× “1995), superseded by statute on other grounds, 17 U.S.C. § 303 (b) (1997)). A work could receive federal SKIDMORE V.”
Clare Milne, by & Through Michael Joseph Coyne, Her Receiver v. Stephen Slesinger, Inc., 430 F.3d 1036 (9th Cir. 2005). “17 U.S.C. § 303 . On October 27, 1998, President Clinton signed into law the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 (“CTEA”), Pub.”
Silverman v. CBS INC., 632 F. Supp. 1344 (S.D.N.Y. 1986). · cites it 2× “17 U.S.C. § 303 (1982). Publication without copy *1350 right notice divested an author of all protection and cast the work into the public domain.”
Richlin v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, Inc., 531 F.3d 962 (9th Cir. 2008). “See 17 U.S.C. § 303 (a) (1976); 3 Nimmer § 9.”
Russell v. Price, 612 F.2d 1123 (9th Cir. 1979). “17 U.S.C. §§ 303 , 302 (1978). See, e. g.”
Societe Civile Succession Guino v. Renoir, 549 F.3d 1182 (9th Cir. 2008). · cites it 3× “The district court, therefore, concluded that 17 U.S.C. § 303 (a) of the 1976 Copyright Act applied because the sculptures were “created before January 1, 1978, but not theretofore in the public domain or copyrighted.”
Capitol Records, Inc. v. Naxos of Am., Inc., 830 N.E.2d 250 (NY 2005). “Congress reacted to La Cienega by amending section 303 of the federal Copyright Act to clarify that “[t]he distribution before January 1, 1978, of a phonorecord shall not for any purpose constitute a publication of the musical work embodied therein” ( 17 USC § 303 [b]). After…”
DeCarlo v. Archie Comic Publications, Inc., 127 F. Supp. 2d 497 (S.D.N.Y. 2001). “17 U.S.C. § 303 . See also H.R. Rep. No. 94-1476, 94th Cong.”
Mayhew v. Int'l Mktg. Grp., 6 F. App'x 277 (6th Cir. 2001). · cites it 9× “We conclude that the district court abused its discretion to the extent that its denial of Mayhew’s motion for relief from judgment disregarded 17 U.S.C. § 303 (b) and the holding of our decision in Mayhew v.”
Batjac Prods. Inc., a California Corp. v. Goodtimes Home Video Corp., a Delaware Corp. Marybeth Peters, Register of Copyrights, 160 F.3d 1223 (9th Cir. 1998). “17 U.S.C. § 303 . Grant died in 1966. The 1976 Act would protect the unpublished screenplay until 2016 (the life of the author plus 50 years as provided in § 302).”
Martha Graham Sch. & Dance Found., Inc. v. Martha Graham Ctr. of Contemporary Dance, Inc., 224 F. Supp. 2d 567 (S.D.N.Y. 2002). “17 U.S.C. § 303 (“Copyright in a work created before January 1, 1978, but not theretofore in the public domain or copyrighted, subsists from January 1, 1978, and endures for the term provided *602 by section 302.”
Mayhew v. Allsup, 166 F.3d 821 (6th Cir. 1999). · cites it 3× “See 17 U.S.C. § 303 (b) (enacted November 13, 1997); see also Batjac Prods.”
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