WHAT IS THE “PUBLIC DOMAIN?”

“ A public domain work is a creative work that is not protected by copyright and which may be freely used by everyone.” 

ARE WORKS IN THE "PUBLIC DOMAIN" COPYRIGHTED?

No. Works in the public domain have no copyright restrictions and can be photocopied freely in part or in whole. An individual can photocopy anything in the public domain without infringing on the copyright.


HOW DO I KNOW IF A WORK IS CURRENTLY IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN?

The Copyright Act of 1976 provides that copyright begins at the moment the work is created. All copyrighted works pass into the public domain upon the expiration of their term of protection. The numerous changes in the term of copyright duration have made it difficult to determine whether a work is currently in the public domain. Any work created since January 1, 1978 is still protected. If a work is older than 1923, it is in the public domain. If a book was published before 1964 and the copyright owner did not obtain a copyright extension it is also in the public domain. Works created by U.S. government employees in the course of their employment are in the public domain. Works created by outside contractors for the U.S. government may or may not be in the public domain depending upon the terms of their contracts. States and local governments may claim copyright in their works.

SEE:

http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm