Page 1 of copyright questions

How does someone go about registering copyright for say a concept for a book/game/film etc? Is there a website you can go to?
Also once you`ve actually registered, does that mean you can stop everyone else releasing products with the same basic idea?
I appreciate any help you can give me.

You can`t copyright a concept. You can only copyright a product (book/game/film), which means you have to have the idea worked up into a viable (i.e. saleable) state. You can copyright your first draft or script, then rework it, but you can`t copyright the basic idea or outline.

Actual copyright exists in anything you create from the moment you create it, but the burden is on you to prove that the book/game/film existed at a particular time. The usual way to do this is to seal a copy in an envelope and mail it to yourself, then get your bank or solicitor to look after the package, providing you with a dated receipt or a signature on a statement that you lodged the item with them on a particular date.

Copyright law is becoming an absolute nightmare thanks to the shenanigans of US corporations, so you have to be ready and certain of winning a legal fight if you think your idea has been ripped off.

J Mark Oates

Try here amigo

Copyright Service.co.uk claim to be a copyright witness agency. I`ve no idea whether they`re legitimate or not, but you are paying to lodge your precious material with them. They have no official copyright status and only have that website to prove their credentials. I`d be cautious at first.

The advice given on the site, however, is excellent.

J Mark Oates

This item was edited on Friday, 17th December 2004, 19:11

yeah looks a bit dodgy, anyone have any actual experience dealing with them?

Quote:
Also once you`ve actually registered, does that mean you can stop everyone else releasing products with the same basic idea?

Thank god for existing copyright law. If you could copyright a concept, the entire entertainment industry might as well shut up shop - no games, films or music would be made because every conceivable concept would be owned, but there would be plenty of people with cheshire cat smiles sitting at home owning `thoughts`.

In fact, the whole GTA game series would never have been made, because i distinctly remember thinking "how cool would a game be where you nicked cars" back in 1993.

This item was edited on Friday, 17th December 2004, 19:17

Another thing, what about trademarks? Can i register the name of a piece of work as a trademark?

Nip over to http://www.intellectual-property.gov.uk/std/faq/copyright/unofficial_registers.htm for the full skinny on copyright and intellectual properties rights. Like I say, copyright is automatic on completion of a "work" (to use the official term). The site I`ve linked to is the official government one. They recommend the bank/solicitor route, and outfits like the UK Copyright service are unofficial. What puts me off is them not putting their fees up front.

You could handle it like doing a will. Make a copy of the work (either paper or disc) and get two witnesses to see you seal it in an envelope with all the edges obviously made tamperproof with signatures across flaps and the like. On the outside of the envelope is a statement that the envelope contains a copy of the work retained for copyright purposes and sealed on a specific date. The witnesses sign the envelope and you put it somewhere safe (ideally in the bank). No idea what a safety deposit box costs these days but I`ll bet it`s cheaper than what one of these copyright witness services might charge.

You have to register a trademark with the Patents office (links to that through the link above. It`s an expensive process and best done when you`ve actually sold the work rather than before - £82.25 for a preliminary search to make sure nobody has used a similar trademark before. £200 for a basic application in a specific class of good or service and £50 for each additional class. Once you`ve applied, the Patents Office can object to the trademark, and everybody else has three months to lodge an objection before you`re granted your TM. There are stringent rules about trademarks wich you can read at the Patent Office website.

J Mark Oates

This item was edited on Friday, 17th December 2004, 19:34

Thanks for the help, i was just wondering though if there`s a definitive way to register a name at least? Or is it the same process as the idea, ie. it`s registered as soon as you write it?

See my update above. :)

J Mark Oates