One of the questions that came up yesterday on the Blog Talk Radio session with Lenn Harley and her attorney Paul Thaler, ESQ was how to file for copyright protection of one of your images, maps or drawings.
It is easy! This summer I filed for protection of the maps I have been using on Active Rain through the electronic copyright registration available on the government copyright site. The first time through the process there are few questions that you need to consider but once you read the instructions it is easy to follow.
If you go to www.copyright.gov you will see a label on the right hand column of the page entitled "How to Register a Work" with a blue box that says "Electronic Copyright Office." Once you click on that box you will be taken to a page that has a number of tutorials. Make sure you read these tutorials first. The most confusing part for me was determining the category for a graphic map.
After you have read the tutorials you can dive right in. Make sure you have an electronic copy of the work you want to register on your computer as you will be asked to upload the image at the end of filling out the registration forms. Save your entries as you work through the forms, it is a bit clunky and I created a template entitled "Real Estate Maps" this eliminates the need for me to re-enter the same data for each map I want to register.
Once you have completed the form you will be taken to an electronic payment page. You can pay your $35 by credit card and they will email you a receipt. Then you will be directed back to the US Copyright site to upload your work. You also have the option of mailing a hardcopy of your work as well.
As we find more and more copyright infringements and violations in cyberspace and on Active Rain spending a few dollars to protect our hard work seems reasonable. For the scoop on copyright violations you can always read Lenn Harley's blog and of course the information found on the US Copyright site. Good luck and happy filing.
Below is an example of one of the maps I filed for copyright protection on this summer. I have filed a total of 10 copyrights so far on the various maps you see in my posts.
Pat thanks for your comment. I'm just adopting the mantra "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" and letting it go at that. Here is another one of my copyright protected maps. It is a little fuzzy as I had to shrink it more than normal to fit in the comment box.
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