COPYRIGHTS
Protecting Creative Works and Digital Assets
Copyright protects original works of authorship, including written content, photographs, artwork, videos, music, software, websites, and other creative works. Copyright protection generally arises when an original work is created and fixed in a tangible medium, but federal registration can provide important additional benefits for ownership and enforcement.
For businesses, copyright protection frequently extends beyond traditional creative works. Source code, website content, product photography, marketing materials, graphics, training materials, databases, and other digital assets may represent substantial investments of time and resources. We help clients identify those assets, establish ownership, obtain registrations, develop licensing strategies, and enforce their rights when protected material is copied or used without authorization.
Copyright issues also frequently involve questions of ownership. Works may be created by employees, independent contractors, agencies, software developers, photographers, or other third parties. We help clients evaluate ownership and assignment issues so that the party investing in the work understands what rights it actually owns.
COPYRIGHT APPLICATIONS
Registration Matters
Copyright protection generally exists without registration, but registration provides significant benefits when a copyright owner needs to enforce those rights. We prepare and prosecute copyright applications before the U.S. Copyright Office for software, websites, photographs, artwork, written materials, marketing content, videos, and other copyrightable works.
Registration strategy can matter. We consider the nature of the work, authorship and ownership, publication status, whether portions of the work have been previously published or registered, and whether available group-registration procedures may be appropriate. We also help businesses develop registration strategies for portfolios containing substantial quantities of frequently created content.
Do You Need a Copyright Registration?
No. Copyright protection generally arises automatically when an original work is created and fixed in a tangible medium. However, you need a copyright registration if you want to enforce your legal rights. Timely registration can provide important procedural and remedial benefits, including potential eligibility for statutory damages and attorney's fees, subject to the requirements of the Copyright Act.
For businesses investing substantially in software, content, photography, artwork, or other creative assets, registration can turn existing copyright ownership into a significantly more useful enforcement tool.
SOFTWARE
Protecting The Source Code Behind The Product
Software can contain multiple forms of intellectual property. While patents may protect certain functional inventions implemented through software, copyright protects original expression embodied in software, including protectable portions of source code and object code. For software companies, copyright registration can therefore complement patent, trademark, trade secret, and contractual protections.
We assist software developers and companies with copyright registrations for computer programs, including applications involving proprietary source code and programs containing previously published, third-party, or open-source material. Registration requires particular attention to what is submitted to the Copyright Office because source code deposited with an application can contain confidential or trade-secret information. Where applicable, Copyright Office procedures may permit portions of deposited code containing trade secrets to be blocked out or otherwise handled under applicable deposit requirements.
Copyright protection does not generally provide exclusive rights over the underlying ideas, algorithms, processes, systems, or methods of operation embodied in software. The distinction between protected expression and unprotected functionality is therefore important when evaluating both registration and enforcement.
Software Ownership
Who wrote the code and who paid for it are not always the same as who owns the copyright. Software developed by employees, founders, independent contractors, outside development firms, or multiple contributors can present ownership issues if the relevant employment, work-made-for-hire, and assignment arrangements were not properly addressed.
We help clients evaluate software ownership, assignments, development agreements, and licensing arrangements so that the intellectual property rights align with the business that develops and commercializes the software.
AI-GENERATED CONTENT
Copyright in The Age of Generative AI
Generative AI is changing how software, images, text, video, music, and other creative works are produced. Under current U.S. copyright law, however, copyright protection requires human authorship. The use of AI does not necessarily prevent protection, but the extent of human creative contribution can determine what portions of an AI-assisted work are eligible for copyright protection and registration.
Copyright issues can also arise in the training and development of AI systems. Training datasets may contain text, images, software, audio, video, and other copyrighted works. Developers and businesses should consider the source and provenance of training data, applicable licenses and permissions, and the rights associated with material used to train, fine-tune, or otherwise develop an AI system.
AI-generated content also raises questions about ownership, licensing, and third-party rights. We help clients evaluate the protectability of AI-assisted works, develop copyright registration strategies, assess rights in training materials and generated outputs, and address the copyright implications of incorporating generative AI into their products and businesses.
COPYRIGHT LICENSING & ENFORCEMENT
Controlling How Your Work Is Used
Copyright ownership gives the owner important rights concerning the reproduction, distribution, display, performance, and creation of derivative works based on protected material. Those rights can be licensed commercially and enforced when protected content is copied or used without authorization.
Copyright Licensing
We assist copyright owners with agreements governing the use of software, photographs, artwork, written content, video, digital media, and other protected works. Copyright licenses can define what material may be used, how it may be used, where and for how long the use is authorized, whether rights are exclusive or nonexclusive, and the compensation associated with that use.
Pre-Suit Enforcement
When copyrighted material is used without authorization, we evaluate ownership, registration, copying, available evidence, potential defenses, and the commercial significance of the infringement before determining how to proceed. Pre-suit enforcement may include cease-and-desist correspondence, licensing demands, settlement negotiations, preservation of evidence, and online takedown procedures.
Copyright Litigation
When litigation becomes necessary, we represent copyright owners and parties accused of infringement. Copyright disputes may involve questions of ownership, copying, substantial similarity, protectable expression, licensing, fair use, damages, and other defenses. As with our other intellectual property litigation, we can work alongside experienced commercial litigation counsel when a copyright dispute forms part of a broader business dispute.
E-COMMERCE
Protecting Creative Assets in The Online Marketplace
E-commerce businesses frequently invest substantial resources in product photography, graphics, packaging, written descriptions, videos, instructional materials, and other original content used to sell their products. Competitors and unauthorized sellers can copy those materials quickly, sometimes reproducing entire product listings across multiple marketplaces.
Marketplace Copyright Enforcement
We assist copyright owners with infringement involving Amazon, Walmart Marketplace, TikTok Shop, eBay, and other e-commerce platforms. Depending on the circumstances, this may include reporting copied photographs, graphics, written content, videos, packaging artwork, and other protected materials through platform-specific intellectual property procedures.
Copyright can be particularly useful when an unauthorized seller copies a brand owner's original content even when the underlying product itself is not protected by copyright. A competitor may be permitted to sell a competing product, for example, while still lacking the right to copy another company's photographs, artwork, videos, or written materials to market that product.
DMCA Takedowns
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act provides procedures that copyright owners may use to request removal of infringing material from qualifying online services. We assist clients in evaluating potentially infringing content and preparing takedown notices where appropriate, as well as responding to counter-notifications and determining whether further enforcement is warranted.
MONITORING & TAKEDOWNS
Finding and Removing Unauthorized Copies
Copyright infringement online can spread quickly. A single photograph, video, graphic, article, or other work can be copied across websites, marketplaces, social-media accounts, and advertisements in a short period of time. We help copyright owners identify unauthorized uses and develop repeatable processes for removing infringing content.
Constant Monitoring
Depending on the client's needs, we can conduct recurring daily or weekly searches for unauthorized copies of protected works. Monitoring may include product photographs, artwork, written content, videos, website materials, software-related content, and other digital assets across websites, search results, e-commerce marketplaces, and social-media platforms.
We can provide periodic reports identifying suspected infringements, the location and party responsible for the use, enforcement actions taken, and the status of takedown requests. This creates a record of recurring infringement and allows enforcement activity to be prioritized based on the importance of the content and the potential harm to the business.
Takedowns Across Online Platforms
We pursue appropriate copyright takedown procedures involving websites, hosting providers, search engines, social-media platforms, Amazon, Walmart Marketplace, TikTok Shop, eBay, and other online services. Depending on where the content appears, this may involve a DMCA notice or a platform's own intellectual property reporting system.
Repeat Infringement
Removing one copy does not necessarily solve the problem. Infringing content may reappear under different URLs, accounts, seller names, or marketplace listings. We can combine recurring monitoring with follow-up enforcement to identify repeat activity and determine when individual takedowns should give way to direct enforcement against the responsible party.
