pictures etc ARE NOT public domain! this is a huge misconception on the internet. Just because something is on the internet does not at all make it public domain.
also penalties for copyright infringement go up when the person refuses to take them down after being told they are in violation. They go even higher if there is a malicious intent.
Public Domain. Here are the rules for determining when a document enters the public domain:
In the United States, material first published before January 1, 1978, usually enters the public domain 75 years from the first date of copyright, that is, 75 years from the original date.
Most works created on or after January 1, 1978, enter the public domain 50 years after the death of the author. This rule applies after January 1, 2023.
After January 1, 2053, any work written by a corporate author and originally published on or after January 1, 1978, will enter the public domain 75 years after publication or 100 years after creation, whichever comes first.
Works created before January 1, 1978, but not published before that date are copyrighted under rules 2 and 3 above. There is one exception here: The copyright on works published after January 1, 1978 expires before December 31, 2002. As a result, a lot of books that might otherwise enter the public domain remain copyrighted
Any work enters the public domain in the United States if a substantial number of copies were printed and distributed in the U.S. without a copyright notice before March 1, 1989.
Substantially new editions of books, especially new translations or editions created by a new editor, are copyrighted from the creation of that edition, not from the creation of the original.
In the United Kingdom and many other nations, copyrights generally endure for the life of the author plus 50 years.
Libraries must conform to the copyright laws of the nation in which the work will be distributed. For example, Peter Pan is in the public domain in the United States but not in the U.K.; therefore, American libraries may not distribute the book online in Great Britain.
Under the 1909 U.S. Copyright Act, protection lasted for 28 years and was renewable for another 28 years for a total of 56 years. In 1962, Congress started overhauling the entire Copyright Act, passing interim extensions giving existing works protection for a total term of 75 years. All copyrights in existence in 1962 were extended to at least 1976, when the 75-year rule went into effect. As a result, works published between 1917 and 1939 have not yet entered the public domain.
A public speech is copyrighted only if the speaker writes it down, authorizes it to be recorded, or has someone record it at the time it is given. Because Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech was written down on paper and registered with the Copyright Office, Mrs. King has been able to forbid its duplication without permission. If you want to tape a speech for distribution (online or off), you will need to obtain copyright clearance from the speaker.
Who is the idiot that writes that stuff ?
