What is copyright law?

Copyright law is an aspect of intellectual property law that protects creative works, such as books, songs, artwork, and software. The Copyright Act of 1976 gives authors of such works exclusive and exclusive rights to their works, including the right to copy, distribute, perform, display, or adapt the work. Under copyright law, the author of a creative work holds exclusive rights to that work, meaning they are the only one allowed to benefit financially from it. These rights can be transferred to another person or company, but the original creator of the work still holds the copyright. In California, if you are the creator of a creative work, you are protected by copyright law as soon as it is fixed in a tangible form. This means that you don’t have to formally register the work with the US Copyright Office for your work to be protected. However, registering your work with the US Copyright Office gives you extra protection and is recommended. If the copyright of a creative work is violated, the copyright owner is given several remedies, including injunctive relief (a court order to stop the infringement) and damages (monetary compensation). Ultimately, copyright law is intended to protect the creative expression of individuals such as authors, composers, and other creators, and to ensure that they can benefit from their work.

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