Okay, all you writters out there - I have a questions. I am talking to writers about creating content and some are asking to put their Copyrights on the material. Since I am paying for the content, I said "I don't think so..." But to be fair, I said I would ask around and see what the "standard practice" is in this field. As writers, writing content for a fee - do you demand Copyrights to the material?
I don't demand it because of the nature of this job, even working into late hours is just reasearch, understand and summarize, not plagiarize. I do demand the copyright if I'm writing original content such as short stories, poems or a novel
The copyright NEVER changes hands from the copywriter UNLESS the copyrighter EXPLICITLY signs over the copyrights. The only exception is when the copywriter is doing the copywriting as an employee.
I agree with KLB, but if somebody is ghostwriting articles for you it is a different story. I run the site keywordsandcopy.com and we offer ghostwriting services. In other words we write articles and then give them to the buyer for them to do what they please. At that point they are no longer ours...
Okay, so I am pretty ignorant about this then. When is a copywriter an employee? So, an independent contractor is NOT an employee? I am not sure why the employee status would affect copyright - help me out - thanks! Also, do I have to have the writer's name and their copyright notice on all the material that I pay them to write?
Huh? This is seems to be different than what KLB is saying - or at least the way I read it. When is someone a "ghostwriter" then? I guess I have been trying to get content from the wrong people - I need "ghostwriters"? Is that different than a regular writer?
Sorry for the confusion. A ghostwriter is somebody that is giving you the right to use the work as you wish. In other words if you want to put your name on the article that is fine. The copyright is yours. I wouldn't say that a ghostwriter is different than a "regular writer", but just be sure that they know they are ghostwriting and will not get any credit, etc. Feel free to pm me...
don't steal articles, its so easy to write your own quality articles. Anyone know of a good auto submitter for articles? I've been manually submitting them to directories which is very effective but takes a lot of time, any direction would be appreciated there.
So, I can say I need "ghostwriters" and they will understand that the Copyright goes to me? Or, as KLB is saying - I need some type of explicit agreement giving me the Copyright? Dang - I guess this is much more complicated than I thought. Might be cheaper for me to write my own stuff...
Creating your own articles is so simple, there shouldn't be stealing or copywrite infringement, when most articles are no more than 10-20 lines of content. Also, wondering if anyone uses an automated or quality article directory?
To make it simple tell your writers that you are requesting that the copyright is transferred to you. This way everyone is one the same page. If they do not want to cooperate it is there loss I suppose...
No it isn't a different story. According to copyright law, the original writer still retains their copyrights unless the explicitly sign them over. EVEN if they are ghostwriting. Then you need to also send the buyer signed copyright transfers. Basically if the copywriter isn't claimed as an employee on your payroll taxes then they are not an employee. That is a simplification of the matter, but it gives you the jist of it. By definition an independent contractor is not an employee and they retain their copyrights to their works unless the explicitly sign them over. An employee's works are considered "work for hire", independent contractors are not considered "work for hire". The only way an independent contractor's work can be considered "work for hire" is if this is spelled out and agreed to in a contract BEFORE the work is created. That is the way the laws are written. For more information on this matter see: http://www.copyright.gov/legislation/dmca.pdf http://chillingeffects.org/copyright/faq.cgi#QID449 http://www.law.cornell.edu/copyright/courses/downloads/topic4.pdf (see Section "A. Works for hire") http://www.utsystem.edu/OGC/INTELLECTUALPROPERTY/cybrscen.htm (see Senerio 1. - 3.b.(ii))
Requesting isn't enough, you need it spelled out in a contract or better yet the creator needs to sign an exclusive transfer of copyrights. I personally use a form from http://findlegalforms.com for this purpose and I do not pay until I recieve the signed copyright release. Everything must be spelled out up front so that there are no missunderstandings.
Unless you're a huge name client that I desperately want on my resume (and I've only had one that I've allowed this with), you don't get my copyrights unless you pay a minimum of a 4 figure buyout fee. Exclusive online rights? Sure. Copyright? Not a chance. My fees used to be lower, but then I wised up. No serious writer is going to just fork over their copyrights (their most valuable possession) for the nickels and dimes they're being paid to write most content, and they certainly shouldn't be asked to. And this isn't just with writers. It was actually after talking to a designer about the issue on another forum that I finally raised my own rates again. Anyone that wants to make a really decent living off of their creative works needs to protect their interests in it. For writers, designers, etc. that means keeping your copyrights, and being smart enough to stay away from work-for-hire agreements. If writing is just a hobby, or if you're just an amateur hoping to say they've been published someplace or to make a few bucks here and there, more power to you. Give up your rights. But if you take your work seriously, protect it. Jenn
That's not true. Unless you've used a "work for hire" agreement, or a contract that explicitly states that you're transferring the copyright assignment to the client, the copyright is still yours, no matter whether you give them permission to remove your name from it or not. Jenn
Correct. I guess I should have made this more clear at the beginning. Of course you should send an agreement to each and every writer pertaining to copyright, etc. This will make it crystal clear for both sides.