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As a matter of fact, you do not need to even declare copyright anywhere in the text to claim copyright (at least in the US). Copyright exists from the moment of
by iherbig 12y ago
As a matter of fact, you do not need to even declare copyright anywhere in the text to claim copyright (at least in the US). Copyright exists from the moment of the work's creation. [1] And placing a copyright notice does not afford you any other benefits without registration anyway. Once you've registered with the US Copyright Office, you may place a copyright notice if you want, but your work is still protected even if you don't. [2]
[1] http://copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html#register http://copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html#register
[2] http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap4.html#401 http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap4.html#401
- diydsp 12y agoI'm dating a lawyer. According to them, what you've written is true, however, speaking practically, there is a significant advantage to be gained from presenting evidence. If two parties show up to a dispute with identical source code, the one that has a copyright in it has an advantage. Sure, it's easily faked, and that could be argued, however, it would be trying to argue away evidence that exists which is much more difficult than arguing in favor of something that does exist. So if you want to lock in a victory and reduce court time, use copyright notices (and other legal notices like trespassing signs, etc.) liberally.