What kind of copyright law changes have been made so far to protect the copyright of 'Mickey Mouse'?
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When the copyright law was first passed in the United States in 1790, the copyright protection period was very short, '14 years' excluding the renewal period. Decades later, in 2015, copyright terms have been renewed to over 100 years in some cases. It is said that all of the causes of such dramatic changes in copyright law are the symbolic character of American culture, ' Mickey Mouse, ' but the copyright protection period in the United States has been extended. After repeating the above, the history until the law called 'Mickey Mouse Life Extension Law' was created in 1998 is summarized.
How Mickey Mouse Keeps Changing Copyright Law --Art Law Journal
https://alj.artrepreneur.com/mickey-mouse-keeps-changing-copyright-law/
The copyright term has changed over 125 years before Mickey Mouse appeared. When the copyright law first appeared in the United States in 1790, the copyright protection period was set at 14 years, and only if the author is alive, apply for an additional 14 years as a renewal period. Is done. In addition, the scope of copyright is limited to maps, charts, and books, and unlike modern times, copyright registration was required to protect copyrighted works. If you do not follow these copyright procedures, all works will be treated as public domain.
In 1831, the 14-year copyright protection period became 28 years, and when the 14-year renewal period was added, it was changed to 'up to 42 years.' Under the Copyright Act of 1909, in addition to the 28-year protection period, the renewal period was 28 years, 'up to 56 years,' and the copyright protection period was gradually extended. At that time, few people applied for copyright on their works, so it is probable that these amendments were made for the very few who claimed copyright.
Mickey Mouse first appeared in the short animation ' Steamboat Willie ' released in 1928, and according to the Copyright Act of 1909, the total copyright protection period of 56 years expires in 1984. As a result, Disney, whose copyright of Mickey Mouse is about to expire, is said to have lobbied for a change in copyright law.
By CHRISTOPHER DOMBRES
As a result of Disney's lobbying activities, the US Congress decided in 1976 to make a major overhaul of the copyright protection system, and recognized Disney as an extended protection target. Instead of '56 years after the publication of the work', the European standard '50 years after the author's death' will be applied. Along with this, even if the work was covered by the copyright law of 1976, retroactive extension will be permitted if it is a corporate work. The maximum copyright protection period for works that have already been published is '75 years', and the 'life' of Mickey Mouse has been extended to 2003. In addition, all works published before 1922 are no longer protected and are in the public domain, and works after 1922 are automatically subject to copyright law without the need for copyright protection procedures. It came to be protected.
Then, when 2003 was approaching and Mickey Mouse was approaching the public domain, in 1998 the US Congress enacted the Copyright Term Extension Act, also known as the 'Mickey Mouse Life Extension Act.' As a general rule, the copyright protection period is '70 years after the author's death', and in the case of corporate authors, it was applied to '95 years after publication' or '120 years after production', whichever is shorter. This meant that Mickey Mouse would be copyrighted until 2023.
The following is a graph of the 'Mickey Mouse curve' showing the transition of the extension of the protection period of Mickey Mouse due to the revision of the law. The copyright term of the United States is 1790, 1831, 1909, 1962 to 1974, 1976, and the copyright extension law is color-coded, and the work of 'Steamboat Willie' that appeared in 1928 The transition of the extension of the copyright protection period is drawn with a gray line. If you look at the gray dotted line, you can see that the protection period of Mickey Mouse has been extended with the law.
By protecting the creation with copyright, it is possible to prevent plagiarism, but the extension following the extension of the protection period means that the work in the public domain cannot be reused. Mickey Mouse's copyright term is about to expire again in 2023, but it is expected that Mickey Mouse's copyright term will be extended again with a new proposal by Disney, a global company. I will. Finally, the Art Law Journal, which summarizes this process, asks the question, 'What would you like to do with Mickey Mouse when'Steamboat Willie'is in the public domain?' And solicits answers in the comments section. ..
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