COMPENDIUM
Glossary
This Glossary provides brief definitions for certain terms as they apply to registration, recordation, and other services provided by the U.S. Copyright Office. Definitions that are taken directly from the Copyright Act or the Office's regulations are enclosed in quotation marks. Definitions that are not enclosed in quotation marks are not legal definitions; they are intended to educate and inform legal practitioners and members of the public who file applications, record documents, and conduct other business with the Office.
1909 Copyright Act: An Act to Amend and Consolidate the Acts Respecting Copyright, Pub. L. No. 60-349, 35 Stat. 1075 [1909]. This law as amended was the copyright law of the United States from July 1, 1909 through December 31, 1977. It was repealed effective January 1, 1978 and replaced with the 1976 Copyright Act.
1976 Copyright Act: Public Law No. 94-553, 90 Stat. 2541 (1976). Passed by Congress and effective on January 1, 1978, this law as amended is the current Copyright Law of the United States. It is codified in Title 17 of the U.S. Code.
Abridgement: A shortened or condensed version of a preexisting work that retains the general sense and unity of the preexisting work.
Act: See "1976 Copyright Act."
Annotation: A statement that the U.S. Copyright Office adds to the registration record to clarify the facts underlying the claim or to identify legal limitations on the claim. To "annotate" means to add an annotation to the record.
Anonymous work: "An 'anonymous work' is a work on the copies or phonorecords of which no natural person is identified as author." 17 U.S.C. § 101.
Appeal: See "request for reconsideration."
Applicant: The party who submits an application to the U.S. Copyright Office.
Architectural work: "An 'architectural work' is the design of a building as embodied in any tangible medium of expression, including a building, architectural plans, or drawings. The work includes the overall form as well as the arrangement and composition of spaces and elements in the design, but does not include individual standard features." 17 U.S.C. § 101. The U.S. Copyright Office registers as architectural works designs for structures that can be inhabited by humans or are otherwise intended for human occupancy. Examples include houses, office buildings, churches, museums, gazebos, and garden pavilions.
Audiovisual work: '"Audiovisual works' are works that consist of a series of related images which are intrinsically intended to be shown by the use of machines or devices such as projectors, viewers, or electronic equipment, together with accompanying
Glossary : 1
12/22/2014
