Copyright

[botma]

When you write a song, is it automatically copyright or do you have to have it copy write. If you do what is involved? Thanks.

[Oren]

Harold,

One of the pleasant hand-me-downs from British "common law" is that in both Canada and the U.S.A.: whoever wrote it, owns it.

In the event of a copyright dispute, no matter how carefully you've documented the ownership of a song, the guy with the best lawyer (most money) will win. It's usually best to just let it go and write a better one, unless you want to finance some lawyer's new sailboat...

So when some scoundrel tries to sell you "copyright protection", decline - the copyright is already yours.

Oren.

[TheBellows]

Aren't there any way to protect your copyright without a lawyer?   

[rharv]

You can try melodyguard.com

Seems like it's better than nothing and much easier than formal registry thru normal channels.  Cheaper in the long run, too.

[Wyatt]

I have made CDs of all my songs and then mailed them to myself..hand-cancelled with the date legible. These get filed in case of the absolutely absurd notion that I might ever need them.

I think this is an old-fashioned idea, probably not technically necessary, and like Oren said: ..whoever has the best lawyer wins.

Speaking of which: ..if somebody steal a song from you, you just have to hope they make millions on it..then a lawyer will jump at the chance to take the case on contingency..(and btw, if a lawyer won't take your case on contingency, you most likely don't have a case). 

Wyatt

[elwoodblues1969]

Botma,

I can't speak for other countries,but in America,a person reserves the right to use 4 measures of someone else's song without permission-which is why the radio is replete with rap songs containing looped samples of other people's music.

Paul McCartney's material is not his own,as Michael Jackson owns the rights to the Beatles's material-just because he has more money than McCartney.

There really isn't much out there to protect your songs,but like Wyatt said,just hope that whoever may steal your songs gets rich,so that you can snatch that fortune from that person with a lawyer.

Thom