Businesses seeking to protect their intellectual property usually have a few options available. The nature of the intellectual property determines the best protection available. In scenarios involving original creations such as works of art, songs, videos and writing, copyright protection is typically what a creator or business requires.
Copyright protection extends sole control and use of a creative work to the party who files paperwork with the United States Copyright Office. Parties with copyrights can prevent others from using an original work. They can monetize creations or use them as part of a company’s branding efforts.
Sometimes, business owners and creative professionals try to pursue a poor man’s copyright, only to be left without protection. Those in need of copyright protection must learn the truth behind this myth.
What is a poor man’s copyright?
For decades, writers and other creatives have told one another to use the mail for copyright protection. They insist that sending a creative work through the mail serves as a low-cost alternative to actually registering the work.
The claim is that mailing a song or other creation to oneself validates the date of creation and extends copyright protection to the creator. Unfortunately, a postmark on an envelope does not prove original authorship or extend copyright protections.
Those seeking informal copyright protections may have better outcomes in cases where they publish the original work. Even disseminating a work on social media could constitute publishing it for the purpose of obtaining copyright protection.
Formal copyright registration is not technically necessary to enforce intellectual property protections, but it does help. Reviewing steps to copyright a work and avoid infringing activities with a skilled legal team can help businesses and creatives take action to protect original works.