Upload Data To Legal Illinois Music Forms For Free

The song itself (i.e., the music and the lyrics) is a musical composi- tion, and a recording of an artist performing that song is a sound recording. In most cases, a musical composition and a sound recording must be registered separately with the Copyright Office.

Luckily, this is really easy to do! In fact, music is automatically copyrighted the moment you create it in a tangible medium; like on paper or on an audio recording. That's right! All you have to do is write your original song down on paper or record it, and you own the copyright.

How long does it take to copyright your song? The length of the registration process can range anywhere from 1?16 months, depending on how you're submitting. Web claims can take between 1?6 months, with an average of three months; mail claims can take between 1?16 months, with an average of six months.

The copyright owner can copyright a song or multiple songs on an audio recording. It takes six or more months to process a song copyright. A nonrefundable $35 filing fee for online applications and an $85 filing fee for paper applications as of this date. Fees can change, so always check the U.S. Copyright website.

Create a public record of your copyright You may have heard of the ?poor man's copyright,? where you mail a dated version of the copyrighted work to yourself to ?prove? it's your creation, but, tough luck: that won't hold up in a court of law, the work must actually be registered with the US Copyright Office.

You can register a logo with the USPTO by using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) or other online trademark service. If your logo includes design elements, you will need to upload an image, using a . jpg file, of the logo as part of your trademark application.