Assignment of Copyright

12 years 2 months ago #205786 by geoffellis
So I see a lot of people who post images and other content online... with nice fancy "Studio Names". Now im kind of wondering what people think of that legally.

Is that an assignment or transfer of copyright ownership to their trading name/business? And if so... what if the business isnt actually registered.

Im thinking of a scenario where someone posts a nice photo online somewhere, with lets say "(C) 2012 Wandering Souls Studio". Now lets say a national advertising agency steals that and uses it in an ad, cutting out the copyright notice (yes unlikely... but stay with me here)

Do you think this photographer has any legal leg(s) to stand on for compensation? If Wandering Souls Studio isnt a registered trading name does the photographer retain copyright even though the notice says otherwise? Will this affect his compensation should he be awarded any.

The other issue is that a copyright notice isnt even required for copyright laws. So can you put any name you want? Can I, Geoff Ellis, put (C) 2012 Bobby-Sue Stevens on my photo and still expect to be able to sue regardless of whether I can prove im the photographer.

I think im starting to ramble... but im hoping my point gets across. This isnt so much meant as a question or series of questions i want answers to... rather more like, hoping a discussion arises. And maybe get people to think twice about what they put on their copyright notices, lol
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12 years 2 months ago #205911 by icepics
It probably depends on how your register your copyright, by your name or the name of your company/business. If you actually register it...

You probably see alot of photos Geoff that show the copyright logo but that alone just means the logo was put on the photo, not necessarily that the photo was registered. However I think just by taking a photo it means that you own the photo and its copyright. I don't know legally which is better, but I suppose if a photo was particularly important or significant it would be worth going thru the process of registering it to better be able to protect it.

I think too that a copyright can be transferred. But I'm going by what I read on the US Copyright Office's site some time ago so I'm not up on what's current.

Sharon
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