Journey Into the Public Domain

A Guide Through the Legal Jungle Trivia Question

Generally, a songwriter may use a sample of a song without infringing the sampled song when the song is no longer protected by copyright law and is in the public domain. Which of the following is a way in which
a song might enter the public domain?

1. Expiration
   of the copyright protecting the song
2. Excessive
   radio play of the song
3. Imprisonment
   of the songwriter
4. Death
   of the songwriter

The
correct answer is A. Copyright
protection does not last forever. Once the copyright expires, the song enters the public domain and anyone may use it. For a 60-second explanation of “How to Determine if Creative Material Is Public Domain
or Copyright Protected” listen to my interview  on the One-Minute How To.

(Thanks
to Jaylen Johnson, J.D. Candidate 2009, Howard University School of Law, who
wrote the initial draft of this trivia question.)