Laws: Cases and Codes : U.S. Code : Title 17
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U.S. Code as of:
01/19/04
Chapter 7 - Notes
Sec.
701. The Copyright Office: General responsibilities and
organization.
702. Copyright Office regulations.
703. Effective date of actions in Copyright Office.
704. Retention and disposition of articles deposited in
Copyright Office.
705. Copyright Office records: Preparation, maintenance,
public inspection, and searching.
706. Copies of Copyright Office records.
707. Copyright Office forms and publications.
708. Copyright Office fees.
709. Delay in delivery caused by disruption of postal or
other services.
[710. Repealed.]
HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES
HOUSE REPORT NO. 94-1476
Chapter 7 entitled "Copyright Office," sets forth the
administrative and housekeeping provisions of the bill.
Administrative Procedure Act. Under an amendment to section 701
adopted by the Committee, the Copyright Office is made fully
subject to the Administrative Procedure Act [5 U.S.C. 551 et seq.
and 701 et seq.] with one exception: under section 706(b),
reproduction and distribution of copyright deposit copies would be
made under the Freedom of Information Act [5 U.S.C. 552] only to
the extent permitted by the Copyright Office regulations.
Retention and Disposition of Deposited Articles. A recurring
problem in the administration of the copyright law has been the
need to reconcile the storage limitations of the Copyright Office
with the continued value of deposits in identifying copyrighted
works. Aside from its indisputable utility to future historians and
scholars, a substantially complete collection of both published and
unpublished deposits, other than those selected by the Library of
Congress, would avoid the many difficulties encountered when copies
needed for identification in connection with litigation or other
purposes have been destroyed. The basic policy behind section 704
is that copyright deposits should be retained as long as possible,
but that the Register of Copyrights and the Librarian of Congress
should be empowered to dispose of them under appropriate safeguards
when they decide that it has become necessary to do so.
Under subsection (a) of section 704, any copy, phonorecord, or
identifying material deposited for registration, whether registered
or not, becomes "the property of the United States Government."
This means that the copyright owner or person who made the deposit
cannot demand its return as a matter of right, even in rejection
cases, although the provisions of section 407 and 408 are flexible
enough to allow for special arrangements in exceptional cases. On
the other hand, Government ownership of deposited articles under
section 704(a) carries with it no privileges under the copyright
itself; use of a deposited article in violation of the copyright
owner's exclusive rights would be infringement.
With respect to published works, section 704(b) makes all
deposits available to the Library of Congress "for its collections,
or for exchanges or transfer to any other library"; where the work
is unpublished, the Library is authorized to select any deposit for
its own collections or for transfer to the National Archives of the
United States or to a Federal records center.
Motion picture producers have expressed some concern lest the
right to transfer copies of works, such as motion pictures, that
have been published under rental, lease, or loan arrangements,
might lead to abuse. However, the Library of Congress has not
knowingly transferred works of this sort to other libraries in the
past, and there is no reason to expect it to do so in the future.
The Committee added a new subsection (c) to section 704, under
which the Register is authorized to make microfilm or other record
copies of copyright deposits before transferring or otherwise
disposing of them.
For deposits not selected by the Library, subsection (d) provides
that they, or "identifying portions or reproductions of them," are
to be retained under Copyright Office control "for the longest
period considered practicable and desirable" by the Register and
the Librarian. When and if they ultimately decide that retention of
certain deposited articles is no longer "practicable and
desirable," the Register and Librarian have joint discretion to
order their "destruction or other disposition." Because of the
unique value and irreplaceable nature of unpublished deposits, the
subsection prohibits their intentional destruction during their
copyright term, unless a facsimile reproduction has been made.
Subsection (e) of section 704 establishes a new procedure under
which a copyright owner can request retention of deposited material
for the full term of copyright. The Register of Copyrights is
authorized to issue regulations prescribing the fees for this
service and the "conditions under which such requests are to be
made and granted."
Catalog of Copyright Entries. Section 707(a) of the bill retains
the present statute's basis requirement that the Register compile
and publish catalogs of all copyright registrations at periodic
intervals, but provides for "discretion to determine, on the basis
of practicability and usefulness the form and frequency of
publication of each particular part". This provision will in no way
diminish the utility or value of the present catalogs, and the
flexibility of approach, coupled with use of the new mechanical and
electronic devices now becoming available, will avoid waste and
result in a better product.
Copyright Office Fees. The schedule of fees set out in section
708 reflects a general increase in the fees of the Copyright Office
from those established by the Congress in 1965. The basic fees are
$10 for registration, $6 for renewal registration, $10 for
recordation of documents and $10 per hour for searching. The
section also contains new fee provisions needed because of new
requirements or services established under the bill, and subsection
(a)(11) authorizes the Register to fix additional fees, on the
"basis of the cost of providing the service," "for any other
special services requiring a substantial amount of time or
expense." Subsection (b) makes clear that, except for the
possibility of waivers in "occasional or isolated cases involving
relatively small amounts," the Register is to charge fees for
services rendered to other Government agencies.
Postal Interruptions. Section 709 authorizes the Register of
Copyrights to issue regulation to permit the acceptance by the
Copyright Office of documents which are delivered after the close
of the prescribed period if the delay was caused by a general
disruption or suspension of postal or other transportation or
communications services.
Reproductions for the Blind and Handicapped. Section 710 directs
the Register of Copyrights to establish by regulation forms and
procedures by which the copyright owners of certain categories of
works may voluntarily grant to the Library of Congress a license to
reproduce and distribute copies or phonorecords of the work solely
for the use of the blind and physically handicapped.
AMENDMENTS
2000 - Pub. L. 106-379, Sec. 3(a)(1), Oct. 27, 2000, 114 Stat.
1445, struck out item 710 "Reproduction for use of the blind and
physically handicapped: Voluntary licensing forms and procedures."
1997 - Pub. L. 105-80, Sec. 12(a)(17), Nov. 13, 1997, 111 Stat.
1535, substituted "Reproduction" for "Reproductions" in item 710.
-SECREF-
CHAPTER REFERRED TO IN OTHER SECTIONS
This chapter is referred to in sections 908, 912 of this title.
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