- reproduction of a painting by Vincent Van Gogh. Spaces 6(a) and 6(b) are blank. The applicant should have disclaimed the Van Gogh painting in space 6(a) and should have described the new material that the applicant intends to register in space 6(b). Nevertheless, the scope of the claim is clear, because space 2 states that the author created a reproduction of a preexisting work of art. The registration specialist may register the claim with an annotation, such as: “Regarding author information: art reproductions are derivative works, based on the underlying work of art, per 17 U.S.C. § 101, definition of ‘derivative work.’”
621.9(A)(3) Unclaimable Material Described in the Application but Not Included in the Deposit Copy(ies)
If the applicant completes the New Material Included/Material Excluded fields or spaces 6(a) and 6(b), but the deposit copy(ies) do not appear to contain any unclaimable material, the registration specialist may annotate the record to clarify the content of the deposit copy(ies).
Example:
- A paper application is submitted for an unpublished work consisting solely of words. In space 6(b) the applicant explains that the author “added words to go with music.” In space 6(a) the applicant disclaims “previously published music.” The work may be registered with an annotation such as: “Regarding limitation of claim: copy only contains words.”
621.9(B) Identifying the Author of a Work That Contains an Appreciable Amount of Unclaimable Material
The applicant should provide the name of the author(s) who created the new material that the applicant intends to register. The applicant need not and should not provide the name of the author(s) who created any unclaimable material that may be included in the work.
An application may be accepted if it names both the author of the unclaimable material and the author of the new material, provided that the unclaimable material itself has been excluded from the claim. Identifying the author of the unclaimable material is considered superfluous in this situation. Likewise, an application may be accepted if the author of the new material and the author of the unclaimable material are named as co-claimants, provided that the work appears to be a joint work and provided that the application has been certified by the author of the new material or his or her authorized agent. Otherwise, the registration specialist will communicate with the applicant.
621.9(C) Authorship Unclear
The copyrightable authorship that the applicant intends to register should be clearly identified in the application, and the scope of the claim to copyright in that authorship should be clearly stated. As a general rule, the U.S. Copyright Office will accept any of the
