That's a good point. So the image of Mickey is still protected for them. I am trying to imagine if I created a company like Disney and a cartoon like Steamboat

That's a good point. So the image of Mickey is still protected for them. I am trying to imagine if I created a company like Disney and a cartoon like Steamboat Willy. Would I want it to go into the public domain after I died if my company were still going strong? If it were not for the company then sure. Let the public domain have it. But the company would be like an extension of myself. In that case I am not so sure.