- A work containing a major contribution from one author combined with a minor contribution by another author, such as a book containing hundreds of pages of text by one author and an introduction or a few illustrations by another author.
505.3 The Scope of the Copyright in a Joint Work
Determining whether a work of authorship is a joint work has important implications for the ownership of the copyright and the term of the copyright.
The authors of a joint work jointly own the copyright in each other’s contributions and each author owns an undivided interest in the copyright for the work as a whole. 17 U.S.C. § 201(a). In other words, all the authors are “treated generally as tenants in common, with each co-owner having an independent right to use or license the use of a work, subject to a duty of accounting to the other co-owners for any profits.” H.R. Rep. No. 94-1476, at 121, reprinted in 1976 U.S.C.C.A.N. at 5736; S. Rep. No. 94-473, at 104.
If the work of authorship was created by two or more individuals, the copyright in the joint work expires seventy years after the death of the last surviving author. 17 U.S.C. § 302(b). If the joint work was created by two or more authors as a work made for hire, an anonymous work, or a pseudonymous work, the copyright expires ninety-five years from the year of publication or 120 years from the year of creation (whichever is shorter). 17 U.S.C. § 302(c). The term “for an anonymous or pseudonymous work can be converted to the ordinary life-plus-[seventy] term if ‘the identity of one or more of the [joint] authors … is revealed’ in … records maintained for this purpose in the Copyright Office.” H.R. Rep. No. 94-1476, at 137, reprinted in 1976 U.S.C.C.A.N. at 5753; S. Rep. No. 94-473, at 120. In this situation, the term of the copyright is “based on the life of the author or co-authors whose identity has been revealed.” 17 U.S.C. § 302(c).
506 Works Made for Hire
This Section provides the definition and a general discussion concerning works made for hire. For guidance in preparing an application to register a work made for hire, see Chapter 600, Sections 613.4, 614.1, 616.1(A), and 617.3.
506.1 What Is a Work Made for Hire?
The term “work made for hire” is defined in Section 101 of the Copyright Act. This definition applies to works created on or after January 1, 1978. For works created prior to 1978, see Chapter 2100.
The statute defines a work made for hire as:
1. A work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment;
or
2. A work that is specially ordered or commissioned, provided that the parties expressly agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work shall be considered a “work made for hire,” and provided that the work is specially ordered or commissioned for use as:
