incorporated in a sound recording. The applicant may clarify the lawful use of preexisting material by including a statement to that effect in the Note to Copyright Office field of the online application or in a cover letter submitted with the paper application.
For a general discussion of this issue, see Chapter 300, Section 313.6(B).
803.6(B) Copyrightable Authorship in Derivative Sound Recordings
To be registrable, a derivative sound recording must contain a sufficient amount of new, creative sound recording authorship. Where the changes made to the preexisting sound recording are the result of a purely mechanical process rather than creative human authorship, or where only a few slight variations or minor additions have been made, registration will be refused. See Section 803.5(B) and 803.5(C).
Although sound-alike recordings do not infringe preexisting sound recordings, a sound- alike recording is not copyrightable unless it contains new, original and sufficiently creative authorship to support a new registration. 17 U.S.C. § 114(b). A virtually identical sound-alike recording will be refused registration.
Common types of derivative sound recordings and the registration issues associated with such works are discussed in Sections 803.6(B)(1) through 803.6(B)(6).
803.6(B)(1) Additional Sounds
Additional sounds that have been added to a preexisting sound recording may be registered if there is a sufficient amount of creative and original sound recording authorship in the new sounds.
803.6(B)(2) Remix
A remix is a recombination and manipulation of audio tracks or channels from a preexisting sound recording to produce a new or modified sound recording. Remixing from multi-track sources generally is a sufficient basis for a copyright claim in a derivative sound recording. Likewise, if a producer and/or engineer is able to manipulate a number of variables and make creative judgments or decisions in determining the outcome of the new recording, there is usually a sufficient basis for a copyright claim. However, the registration specialist will communicate with the applicant to clarify a claim in a remix from monaural or stereophonic sources, because in such cases it is unlikely that there was sufficient derivative authorship. In all cases, the remixing of preexisting sound recordings must be lawful to be copyrightable (z.e., authorized or permissible by law). 17 U.S.C. § 103(a).
For a discussion of "mashups," see Section 803.6(B)(5).
803.6(B)(3) Editorial Authorship
The Office may register a claim in copyrightable editorial authorship where an original sound recording is recast, transformed, or adapted with editorial revisions or
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