copyright notice requirements, see U.S. Copyright Office, Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices Chs. 4, 8.2, & Supplementary Practice Nos. 18, 19, 27, 29, 35 & 37 (1st ed. 1973), available at http://copyright.gov/comp3/chap2100/doc/appendixA- noticerequirements.pdf.
2122.4 Works Prepared for Oral Delivery, Presentation, or Performance
In general, nondramatic literary works could only secure statutory protection under the Copyright Act of 1909 by the act of publication with the statutory or U.C.C. notice, followed by registration in class A, or since 1978, in class TX. However, certain literary works prepared specifically for performance or presentation to the public could secure statutory protection prior to publication by registration in class C. Because these works secured statutory protection by registration as unpublished works, a renewal claim based on an original class C registration cannot contain publication information.
2122.4(A) First Published in Copies
While a presentation or performance (or a limited distribution of copies for the purpose of presentation or performance) may not have caused a work to lose its common law protection under the Copyright Act of 1909 as an unpublished work, an unrestricted distribution of a work to the general public may have done so. See, e.g., Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc., 194 F.3d 1211, 1214-15 (11th Cir. 1999); King v. Mister Maestro, Inc., 224 F. Supp. 101, 106 (S.D.N.Y. 1963). When works registered in class C were published prior to 1978, they had to meet statutory requirements for books, including the manufacturing requirements, to maintain copyright through the full original term of copyright. When such works failed to do so upon publication, renewal registration is not possible.
2122.4(B) First Published as a Component Element of a Motion Picture Soundtrack
Renewal registration for a script, a speech, or an interview first published in a motion picture (such as a news broadcast or documentary) is not possible unless the underlying literary work was registered separately in class C prior to publication, or the motion picture as first published contained a separate copyright notice for the literary work. See Section 2122.6(C). Renewal registration may not be based on the original registration record for the motion picture.
2122.4(C) Released Only in a Phonorecord
Under the Copyright Act of 1909, releasing a sound recording on a phonorecord did not constitute publication of the literary work; however, reproducing any portion of the literary work on the album cover or insert material published that portion with the release of the phonorecord.
2122.4(D) Notice Requirements
The notice requirements for literary works prepared specifically for performance, delivery or presentation to the public are the same as the notice requirements for dramatic works. See Section 2122.2(D). For more information about copyright notice requirements, see U.S. Copyright Office, Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices
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