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US Copyright Office — 4 pages

Reference Copyright registration is not the USPTO's job — and the USPTO's own page treats a "brand" as a marketing concept, separate from what federal registration provides The USPTO grants patents and registers trademarks; the US Copyright Office at the Library of Congress registers copyrights. Registering a brand is described as a choice. Read 2026-09-28. Policy · Sep 28 Reference Copyright Registration Is Not Ownership — but for a United States Work, Registration or Refusal Is What Opens the Courthouse Door Section 408(a): registration "is not a condition of copyright protection". Section 411(a): no civil action for a United States work until registration. Both are true. As of 2026-09-25. Policy · Sep 25 Reference A Work Made for Hire Has Only Two Paths — and the Commissioned One Fails Unless All Four Conditions Are Met Paying for a work does not make it a work made for hire. The Copyright Office lists four criteria and says that failing any one of them means it is not one. As of 2026-09-25. Policy · Sep 25 Reference Public Domain Day 2027 — 1931 Works Enter Only If Their Copyright Was Renewed The Copyright Office says all US works published before January 1, 1931 are public domain. Older works got 28 years plus a renewal: renewed ones run 95 years, unrenewed ones ended at 28. Media · Sep 21