Can One Copyright an Idea?
- Copyright protection begins the moment a work is completed in a tangible fixed format. There is no registration necessary for an artist to enjoy copyright protection. Registering a copyright with the United States Copyright Office just ensures the artist can pursue an infringement case. The registration essentially fixes a date of creation and registers the owner of a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office.
- Creative works of all types can be registered with the copyright office. This includes written music, song lyrics, books, short stories, paintings, photographs, drawings and screenplays and movie treatments. To be eligible for registration, the work must be in a fixed form. A song, for instance, must either be written as sheet music or in a recorded format. A story must be either written out or spoken, in full, as it is being copyrighted. For example, you can't copyright a basic movie idea like a "story about a boxer who makes it big." You could copyright a three or four page prose treatment of that story with details.
- Ideas and titles cannot be copyrighted, only the execution of those ideas. For instance, if some gives you an idea for a story that you proceed to write, you can copyright the story. The person with the idea cannot sue you for copyright infringement because an idea alone is not sufficient for copyright protection. The same holds true for a title. Other things that can't be copyrighted include names, slogans, short phrases, sightings or common knowledge.
- Partial works may be copyrighted. Again, as long as you don't try to copyright an idea for something and place your information in a fixed format that can be identified as yours, you can register it. You can't apply for a copyright on "a book about brothers who fight," but you can write a few chapters of your book and copyright the work at any stage of the writing process. You will have to go back to the United States Copyright Office and upload a new version of the file each time you add material to the story. Unless you are circulating your work, it's best to wait and copyright the finished work.
- Trademark and copyright are different things. While a copyright cannot protect a name, a trademark can be used to protect a name and keep others from using it. Trademark, however, does not protect ideas. Like copyright law, an idea can only be protected if it is executed (authored) in a tangible medium.