by Jason Fischer

United States copyright law protects original works of authorship that have been fixed in any tangible medium of expression.  Pretty much anything that you can write down or record is automatically protected from direct copying without your permission.  Everything from that flier for your company’s last promotion to the business plan that you spent weeks drafting in preparation for that product launch is covered.  As long as it’s original, and as long as you took the time to get it down on paper, you’ve got copyright protection.

The “originality” requirement of our copyright statute is a very low hurdle.  As long as you created it, and as long as it has the smallest amount of creativity, then a work of authorship qualifies for automatic protection.  Only the most basic and unoriginal material is considered ineligible for protection.  For example, the United States Supreme Court has ruled that alphabetized lists of names and contact information (e.g., phonebooks) are not original enough to be protected by copyright.  Also, anything that can only be expressed in a limited number of ways, e.g., contest rules or contract terms, will not be afforded protection.  Anything else is fair game.

Where many people run into trouble is the “fixation” requirement.  There is no protection for unexpressed ideas.  The statutory language is careful to point out that there is no limitation on what medium must be employed, but unless the expression is fixed in such a way that it can be duplicated, then you cannot stop someone else from getting it down and claiming their own expression.

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