RENEWED COPYRIGHTS AUTOMATICALLY EXTENDED TO MAXIMUM OF 95 YEARS

Under the statute, copyrights that had already been renewed and were in
their second term at any time between December 31, 1976, and December 31,
1977, inclusive, were automatically extended in duration. The total
length of these copyrights is now 95 years from the end of the year in
which they were originally secured.

EXAMPLE: A work that was first copyrighted on April 10, 1923, and
renewed between April 10, 1950, and April 10, 1951, would formerly have
fallen into the public domain after April 10, 1979. The current law
extends this copyright through the end of 2018.

These second-term copyrights cannot be renewed again. Under the law,
their extension to the maximum 95-year term is automatic and requires no
action in the Copyright Office.


A SPECIAL SITUATION:
COPYRIGHTS REGISTERED FOR RENEWAL BETWEEN DECEMBER 31, 1976, AND
DECEMBER 31, 1977

The automatic extension also applied to copyrights that were the subject
of a renewal registration between December 31, 1976, and December 31,
1977, even though their second term was not scheduled to commence until
sometime in 1978.

EXAMPLE: A work was first copyrighted on July 29, 1950, and a renewal
registration was made on September 1, 1977. The second term of
copyright was automatically extended through the end of 2045 without