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INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

NATIONAL LEGISLATION - USA

Copyright Laws and Regulations

Regulations: Title 37, Chapters I (Subchapter C) and II, Code of Federal
Regulations


(Continuation)

37 C.F.R. § 201.33   Procedures for filing Notices of Intent to Enforce a restored copyright under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.  

        (a) General. This section prescribes the procedures for submission of Notices of Intent to Enforce a Restored Copyright under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, as required in 17 U.S.C. 104A(a). On or before May 1, 1996, and every four months thereafter, the Copyright Office will publish in the Federal Register a list of works for which Notices of Intent to Enforce have been filed. It will maintain a list of these works. The Office will also make a more complete version of the information contained in the Notice of Intent to Enforce available on its automated database, which can be accessed over the Internet.  

        (b) Definitions -- (1) NAFTA work means a work restored to copyright on January 1, 1995, as a result of compliance with procedures contained in the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act of December 8, 1993, Public Law No. 103-182.  

        (2) Reliance party means any person who --  

        (i) With respect to a particular work, engages in acts, before the source country of that work becomes an eligible country under the URAA, which would have violated 17 U.S.C. 106 if the restored work had been subject to a copyright protection and who, after the source country becomes an eligible country, continues to engage in such acts;  

        (ii) Before the source country of a particular work becomes an eligible country, makes or acquires one or more copies of phonorecords of that work; or  

        (iii) As the result of the sale or other disposition of a derivative work, covered under the new 17 U.S.C. 104A(d)(3), or of significant assets of a person, described in the new 17 U.S.C. 104 A(d)(3) (A) or (B), is a successor, assignee or licensee of that person.  

        (3) Restored work means an original work of authorship that --  

        (i) Is protected under 17 U.S.C. 104A(a);  

        (ii) Is not in the public domain in its source country through expiration of term of protection;  

        (iii) Is in the public domain in the United States due to --

        (A) Noncompliance with formalities imposed at any time by United States copyright law, including failure of renewal, lack of proper notice, or failure to comply with any manufacturing requirements;  

        (B) Lack of subject matter protection in the case of sound recordings fixed before February 15, 1972; or  

        (C) Lack of national eligibility; and  

        (iv) Has at least one author or rightholder who was, at the time the work was created, a national or domiciliary of an eligible country, and if published, was first published in an eligible country and not published in the United States during the 30-day period following publication in such eligible country.  

        (4) Source country of a restored work is --  

        (i) A nation other than the United States; and  

        (ii) In the case of an unpublished work --  

        (A) The eligible country in which the author or rightholder is a national or domiciliary, or, if a restored work has more than one author or rightholder, the majority of foreign authors or rightholders are nationals or domiciliaries of eligible countries; or  

        (B) If the majority of authors or rightholders are not foreign, the nation other than the United States which has the most significant contacts with the work; and  

        (iii) In the case of a published work --  

        (A) The eligible country in which the work is first published; or  

        (B) If the restored work is published on the same day in two or more eligible countries, the eligible country which has the most significant contacts with the work.  

        (c) Forms. The Copyright Office does not provide forms for Notices of Intent to Enforce filed with the Copyright Office. It requests that filers of such notices follow the format set out in Appendix A of this section and give all of the information listed in paragraph (d) of this section. Notices of Intent to Enforce must be in English, and should be typed or printed by hand legibly in dark, preferably black, ink, on 8 1/2 by 11 inch white paper of good quality, with at least a one inch (or three cm) margin.  

        (d) Requirements for Notice of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored Under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act. (1) Notices of Intent to Enforce should be sent to the following address: URAA/GATT, NIEs and Registrations, P.O. Box 72400, Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024, USA.  

        (2) The document should be clearly designated as “Notice of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act”.  

        (3) Notices of Intent to Enforce must include:

        (i) Required information:  

        (A) The title of the work, or if untitled, a brief description of the work;  

        (B) An English translation of the title if title is in a foreign language;  

        (C) Alternative titles if any;  

        (D) Name of the copyright owner of the restored work, or of an owner of an exclusive right therein;  

        (E) The address and telephone number where the owner of copyright or the exclusive right therein can be reached; and  

        (F) The following certification signed and dated by the owner of copyright, or the owner of an exclusive right therein, or the owner's authorized agent:  

        I hereby certify that for each of the work(s) listed above, I am the copyright owner, or the owner of an exclusive right, or the owner's authorized agent, the agency relationship having been constituted in a writing signed by the owner before the filing of this notice, and that the information given herein is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.  

        Signature --------------  

        Name (printed or typed) --------------  

        As agent for (if applicable) --------------  

        Date: --------------  

        (ii) Optional but essential information:  

        (A) Type of work (painting, sculpture, music, motion picture, sound recording, book, etc.);  

        (B) Name of author(s);  

        (C) Source country;  

        (D) Approximate year of publication;  

        (E) Additional identifying information (e.g. for movies: director, leading actors, screenwriter, animator; for photographs or books: subject matter; for books: editor, publisher, contributors);  

        (F) Rights owned by the party on whose behalf the Notice of Intent to Enforce is filed (e.g., the right to reproduce/distribute/publicly display/publicly perform the work, or to prepare a derivative work based on the work, etc.); and  

        (G) Telefax number at which owner, exclusive rights holder, or agent thereof can be reached.

        (4) Notices of Intent to Enforce may cover multiple works provided that each work is identified by title, all the works are by the same author, all the works are owned by the identified copyright owner or owner of an exclusive right, and the rights owned by the party on whose behalf the Notice of Intent is filed are the same.   In the case of Notices of Intent to Enforce covering multiple works, the notice must separately designate for each work covered the title of the work, or if untitled, a brief description of the work; an English translation of the title if the title is in a foreign language; alternative titles, if any; the type of work; the source country; the approximate year of publication; and additional identifying information.  

        (5) Notices of Intent to Enforce works restored on January 1, 1996, may be submitted to the Copyright Office on or after January 1, 1996, through December 31, 1997.  

        (e) Fee -- (1) Amount. The filing fee for recording Notices of Intent to Enforce is 30 U.S. dollars for notices covering one work.   For notices covering multiple works as described in paragraph (d)(4) of this section, the fee is 30 U.S. dollars, plus one dollar for each additional work covered beyond the first designated work.   For example, the fee for a Notice of Intent to Enforce covering three works would be 32 U.S. dollars.   This fee includes the cost of an acknowledgement of recordation.  

        (2) Method of Payment. (i) Checks, money orders, or bank drafts. The Copyright Office will accept checks, money orders, or bank drafts made payable to the Register of Copyrights.   Remittances must be redeemable without service or exchange fees through a United States institution, must be payable in United States dollars, and must be imprinted with American Banking Association routing numbers. International money orders, and postal money orders that are negotiable only at a post office are not acceptable.   CURRENCY WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.  

        (ii) Copyright Office Deposit Account. The Copyright Office maintains a system of Deposit Accounts for the convenience of those who frequently use its services. The system allows an individual or firm to establish a Deposit Account in the Copyright Office and to make advance deposits into that account.   Deposit Account holders can charge copyright fees against the balance in their accounts instead of sending separate remittances with each request for service.   For information on Deposit Accounts please write: Copyright Office, Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20559-6000, and request a copy of Circular 5, “How to Open and Maintain a Deposit Account in the Copyright Office.”  

        (iii) Credit cards. For URAA filings the Copyright Office will accept VISA, MasterCard and American Express. Debit cards cannot be accepted for payment.   With the NIE, a filer using a credit card must submit a separate cover letter stating the name of the credit card, the credit card number, the expiration date of the credit card, the total amount, and a signature authorizing the Office to charge the fees to the account.   To protect the security of the credit card number, the filer must not write the credit card number on the Notice of Intent to Enforce.  

        (f) Public online access. (1) Almost all of the information contained in the Notice of Intent to Enforce is available online in the Copyright Office History Documents (COHD) file through the Library of Congress electronic information system LC MARVEL through the Internet.   Except on Federal holidays, this information may be obtained on terminals in the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time or over the Internet Monday -- Friday 6:30 a.m. -- 9:30 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time, Saturday 8:00 a.m. -- 5 p.m., and Sunday 1:00 p.m. -- 5:00 p.m.  

        (2) Alternative ways to connect through Internet are: (i) use the Copyright Office Home Page on the World Wide Web at: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright, (ii) telnet to locis.loc.gov or the numeric address 140.147.254.3, or (iii) telnet to marvel.loc.gov, or the numeric address 140.147.248.7 and log in as marvel, or (iv) use a Gopher Client to connect to marvel.loc.gov.  

        (3) Information available online includes: the title or brief description if untitled; an English translation of the title; the alternative titles if any; the name of the copyright owner or owner of an exclusive right; the author; the type of work; the date of receipt of the NIE in the Copyright Office; the date of publication in the Federal Register; the rights covered by the notice; and the address, telephone and telefax number (if given) of the copyright owner.  

        (4) Online records of Notices of Intent to Enforce are searchable by the title, the copyright owner or owner of an exclusive right, and the author.  

        (g) NAFTA work. The copyright owner of a work restored under NAFTA by the filing of a NAFTA Statement of Intent to Restore with the Copyright Office prior to January 1, 1995, is not required to file a Notice of Intent to Enforce under this regulation.  

        Appendix A to § 201.33 -- Notice of Intent To Enforce a Copyright Restored Under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA)  

        1. Title: --------------  

        (If this work does not have a title, state “No title.”) OR  

        Brief description of work (for untitled works only): --------------  

        2. English translation of title (if applicable):  

        3. Alternative title(s) (if any): --------------  

        4. Type of work: --------------  

        (e.g. painting, sculpture, music, motion picture, sound recording, book)  

        5. Name of author(s): --------------  

        6. Source country: --------------  

        7. Approximate year of publication: --------------  

        8. Additional identifying information: --------------  

        (e.g. for movies; director, leading actors, screenwriter, animator, for photographs: subject matter; for books; editor, publisher, contributors, subject matter).

        9. Name of copyright owner: --------------  

        (Statements may be filed in the name of the owner of the restored copyright or the owner of an exclusive right therein.)  

        10. If you are not the owner of all rights, specify the rights you own: --------- 

        (e.g. the right to reproduce/distribute publicly display/publicly perform the work, or to prepare a derivative work based on the work)  

        11. Address at which copyright owner may be contacted: --------------------  

        (Give the complete address, including the country and an “attention” line, or “in care of” name, if necessary.)  

        12. Telephone number of owner: --------------  

        13. Telefax number of owner: --------------  

        14. Certification and Signature:  

        I hereby certify that, for each of the work(s) listed above, I am the copyright owner, or the owner of an exclusive right, or the owner's authorized agent, the agency relationship having been constituted in a writing signed by the owner before the filing of this notice, and that the information given herein is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.  

        Signature: --------------  

        Name (printed or typed): --------------  

        As agent for (if applicable): --------------  

        Date: --------------  

        NOTE: Notices of Intent to Enforce must be in English, except for the original title, and either typed or printed by hand legibly in dark, preferably black, ink. They should be on 8 1/2” by 11” white paper of good quality, with at least a 1-inch (or 3 cm) margin.  

[60 FR 50414, 50420, Sept. 29, 1995; 63 FR 30634, 30635, June 5, 1998]  

37 C.F.R. § 201.34   Procedures for filing Correction Notices of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.  

        (a) General. This section prescribes the procedures for submission of corrections of Notices of Intent to Enforce a Copyright (NIEs) Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act of December 8, 1994, as required by 17 U.S.C. 104A(e), as amended by Pub. L. 103-465, 108 Stat. 4809, 4976 (1994).  

        (b) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply.  

        (1) Major error. A major error in filing a Notice of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act is an error in the name of the copyright owner or rightholder, or in the title of the work (as opposed to its translation, if any) where such error fails to adequately identify the restored work or its owner through a reasonable search of the Copyright Office NIE records. Omission of, or incorrect information regarding, a written agency relationship also constitutes a major error.  

        (2) Minor error. A minor error in filing a Notice of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act is any error that is not a major error.  

        (3) Restored work. For the definition of works restored under the URAA, see 37 CFR 201.33.  

        (c) Forms. The Copyright Office does not provide forms for Correction Notices of Intent to Enforce filed with the Copyright Office.   It requests that filers of such Correction NIEs follow the format set out in Appendix A of this section and give all information listed in paragraph (d) of this section. Correction NIEs must be in English, and should be typed or legibly printed by hand in dark, preferably black ink, on 8 1/2” by 11” white paper of good quality with at least a 1” (or three cm) margin.  

        (d) Requirements for Correction Notice of Intent to Enforce a Copyright Restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act. (1) A correction for a Notice of Intent to Enforce should be clearly designated as a “Correction Notice of Intent to Enforce” or “Correction NIE.”  

        (2) Correction Notices of Intent to Enforce should be sent to the following address: URAA/GATT, NIEs and Registrations, PO Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024, USA.

        (3) A Correction NIE shall contain the following information:  

        (i) The volume and document number of the previous NIE which is to be corrected;  

        (ii) The title of the work as it appears on the previous NIE, including alternative titles, if they appear;  

        (iii) The English translation of the title, if any, as it appears on the previous NIE;  

        (iv) A statement of the erroneous information as it appears on the previous NIE;  

        (v) A statement of the correct information as it should have appeared and an optional explanation of its correction; or  

        (vi) A statement of the information to be added. This includes optional information such as:  

        (A) Type of work;  

        (B) Rights owned by the party on whose behalf the Correction Notice is filed;  

        (C) Name of author;  

        (D) Source country;  

        (E) Year of publication;  

        (F) Alternative titles;  

        (G) An optional explanation of the added information.  

        (vii) The name and address:  

        (A) To which correspondence concerning the document should be sent; and  

        (B) To which the acknowledgment of the recordation of the Correction NIE should be mailed; and  

        (viii) A certification. The certification shall consist of:  

        (A) A statement that, for each of the works named above, the person signing the Correction NIE is the copyright owner, or the owner of an exclusive right, or the owner's authorized agent, and that the information is correct to the best of that person's knowledge;  

        (B) The typed or printed name of the person whose signature appears;  

        (C) The signature and date of signature; and  

        (D) The telephone and telefax number at which the owner, rightholder, or agent thereof can be reached.

        (4) A Correction NIE may cover multiple works in multiple NIE documents for one fee provided that: each work is identified by title; all the works are by the same author; all the works are owned by the same copyright owner or owner of an exclusive right. In the case of Correction NIEs, the notice must separately designate each title to be corrected, noting the incorrect information as it appeared on the previously filed NIE, as well as the corrected information. A single notice covering multiple titles need bear only a single certification.  

        (5) Copies, phonorecords or supporting documents cannot be made part of the record of a Correction NIE and should not be submitted with the document.  

        (6) Time for Submitting Correction NIEs.  

        (i) Major errors. The Copyright Office will accept a Correction NIE for a major error concerning a restored work during the 24-month period beginning on the date of restoration of the work, as provided for original NIEs in section 104A(d)(2)(A) of title 17.  

        (ii) Minor errors. The Office will accept a Correction NIE for a minor error or omission concerning a restored work at any time after the original NIE has been filed, as provided in section 104A(e)(1)(A)(iii) of title 17.  

        (e) Fee. -- (1) Amount. The filing fee for recording Correction NIEs is 30 U.S. dollars for each Correction Notice covering one work. For single Correction NIEs covering multiple works, that is, for works by the same author and owned by the same copyright owner or owner of an exclusive right, the fee is 30 U.S. dollars, plus one dollar for each additional work covered beyond the first designated work.  

        (2) Method of payment. See 37 CFR 201.33(e)(1),(2).  

        (f) Public online access. Information contained in the Correction Notice of Intent to Enforce is available online in the Copyright Office History Documents (COHD) file through the Library of Congress electronic information system, available through the Internet. This file is available from computer terminals located in the Copyright Office itself or from terminals located in other parts of the Library of Congress through the Library of Congress Information System (LOCIS). Alternative ways to connect through Internet are the World Wide Web (WWW), using the Copyright Office Home Page at: http:/www.loc.gov/copyright; directly to LOCIS through the telnet address at locis.loc.gov; or the Library of Congress through gopher LC MARVEL and WWW which are available 24 hours a day. LOCIS is available 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday. For the purpose of researching the full Office record of Correction NIEs on the Internet, the Office has made online searching instructions accessible through the Copyright Office Home Page. Researchers can access them through the Library of Congress Home Page on the World Wide Web by selecting the copyright link. Select the menu item “Copyright Office Records” and/or “URAA, GATT Amends U.S. law.” Images of the complete Correction NIEs as filed will be stored on optical disk and will be available from the Copyright Office.  

        Appendix A to § 201.34 -- Correction Notice of Intent To Enforce  

        Correction of Notice of Intent To Enforce

        1. Name of Copyright Owner (or owner of exclusive right) If this correction notice is to cover multiple works, the author and the rights owner must be the same for all works covered by the notice.)  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        2. Title(s) (or brief description)  

        (a) Work No. 1----  

        Volume and Document Number: ---  

        English Translation: ---  

        (b) Work No. 2 (if applicable)----  

        Volume and Document Number: ---  

        English Translation: ---  

        (c) Work No. 3 (if applicable)----  

        Volume and Document Number: ---  

        English Translation: ---  

        (d) Work No. 4 (if applicable)----  

        Volume and Document Number: ---  

        English Translation: ---  

        3. Statement of incorrect information on earlier NIE:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        4. Statement of correct (or previously omitted) information:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        Give the following only if incorrect or omitted on earlier NIE:  

        (a) Type of work ---  

        (b) Rights owned ---  

        (c) Name of author (of entire work) ---  

        (d) Source Country ---  

        (e) Year of Publication (Approximate if precise year is unknown) ---

        (f) Alternative titles ---  

        5. Explanation of error:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        6. Certification and Signature: I hereby certify that for each of the work(s) listed above, I am the copyright owner, or the owner of an exclusive right, or the owner's authorized agent, the agency relationship having been constituted in a writing signed by the owner before the filing of this notice, and that the information given herein is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        Name and Address (typed or printed):  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        Telephone/Fax:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        As agent for:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

        Date and Signature:  

        ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------  

[62 FR 55736, 55739, Oct. 28, 1997]  

Continuation: 37 C.F.R. § 201.35   Initial Notice of Digital Transmission of Sound Recordings under Statutory License.


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