Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Friday December 07 2018, @07:37AM   Printer-friendly
from the Please-keep-the-MOUSE-out-of-the-HOUSE-(and-Senate) dept.

Mark your calendar: on January 1, 2019, works will again begin entering the public domain in the United States.

On that day, one year's worth of copyrighted works — that were first published in 1923 — will become freely available to all.

A long list of affected works is available on Lifehacker, including movies, books, music, and art.

For 20 long years, the progression of works into the public domain stopped when copyright was extended in the Sonny Bono Act in 1998 to protect Disney's "Mickey Mouse"

Speaking of Disney, they're the ones who lobbied for such long copyright terms, because in 1998 Mickey Mouse's first appearance (in the 1928 cartoon Steamboat Willie) was close to losing its copyright. But after the Sonny Bono Act, Now that first Mickey Mouse appearance will enter the public domain in 2024.

It is an open question whether Disney will attempt to push for further extensions and changes in copyright by 2024. In the meantime however The Atlantic notes

A Google spokesperson confirmed that Google Books stands ready. Its software is already set up so that on January 1 of each year, the material from 95 years earlier that's currently digitized but only available for searching suddenly switches to full text.

Anyone else going to buy a Steamboat Willie shirt in 2024 and not one moment sooner?


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 3, Funny) by bob_super on Friday December 07 2018, @06:04PM

    by bob_super (1357) on Friday December 07 2018, @06:04PM (#771247)

    "Straining Under Pressure to Enhance Revenue : Protecting American Culture"
    Yup, that will pass unanimously.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Funny=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Funny' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   3