Examples:
- A directory of services for a particular region.
- A list of the best short stories of 2014.
- A collection of the best sound recordings of 1985.
The statute states that “[t]he term ‘compilation’ includes collective works,” which are discussed in more detail in Section 509 below. 17 U.S.C. § 101. Creating a collective work also “involve[s] the selection, assembly, and arrangement of ‘a number of contributions,” because this type of work “is a species of ‘compilation.’” H.R. Rep. No. 94-1476, at 122, reprinted in 1976 U.S.C.C.A.N. at 5737; S. Rep. No. 94-473, at 105.
Examples:
- A book of news photos.
- An academic journal containing articles on a particular topic.
- A newspaper comprised of articles by different journalists.
508.2 The Scope of the Copyright in a Compilation
The fact that a compilation has been registered with the U.S. Copyright Office does not necessarily mean that every element of the work is protected by copyright. A claim to copyright in a compilation “extends only to the material contributed by the author of such work” and does not “imply any exclusive right in the preexisting material.” 17 U.S.C. § 103(b). The data, facts, or other uncopyrightable material that appears in a compilation is not protected by the copyright in that work. See Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural Telephone Service Co., 499 U.S. 340, 360 (1991) (stating that “the copyright in a compilation does not extend to the facts it contains”). A registration for a compilation does not cover any of the preexisting material or data that appears in the compilation unless that material or data is expressly claimed in the registration. Likewise, a registration for a compilation does not cover any previously published material, previously registered material, public domain material, or third party material that appears in the compilation. “This inevitably means that the copyright in a factual compilation is thin. Notwithstanding a valid copyright, a subsequent compiler remains free to use the facts contained in another’s publication to aid in preparing a competing work, so long as the competing work does not feature the same selection and arrangement.” Id. 499 U.S. at 349.
When registering a compilation, the applicant should identify the preexisting material or data that the author selected, coordinated, and/or arranged. If the compilation contains an appreciable amount of previously published material, previously registered material, public domain material, or material owned by a third party, the applicant generally should limit the claim to the new material that the author contributed to the work and the unclaimable material should be excluded from the claim. For guidance on this procedure, see Chapter 600, Section 621.8(E).
