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PURPOSE OF THIS CIRCULAR
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This circular will inform you of the provisions in the copyright statute
affecting the duration of subsisting copyrights and give you some
information with examples illustrating what these provisions mean. For
works copyrighted for the first time on or after January 1, 1978, the
statutory provisions governing the duration of protection are quite
different and are not included in this circular. For general information
about duration of copyright under the current law, request Circular 15a,
"Duration of Copyright."


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EFFECT OF 1976 COPYRIGHT LAW WITH AMENDMENTS OF 1992 AND 1998
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The Copyright Act of October 1976 (Public Law 94-553, 90 Stat. 2541,
amending title 17 of the United States Code), effective January 1, 1978,
has been amended to extend the term of copyright on two subsequent
occasions with the passage of the Copyright Amendments Act of 1992
(Public Law 102-307, 10 6 Stat. 266, amending section 304 of title 17 of
the United States Code), and the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act
of 1998 (Public Law 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827, amending chapter 3 of title
17 of the United States Code).