Question

Topic: Copywriting

Copywriting Protection.

Posted by Anonymous on 6/2/2015 at 2:35 PM ET 50 Points
Is it possible to obtain copywriter or trademark protection on a saying that you are putting on a t-shirt you plan to sell to the public.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by mgoodman on 6/2/2015 at 3:02 PM Accepted
    My understanding -- as a marketer and businessperson, not as an attorney:

    You can CLAIM copyright protection on just about anything, but the only thing that gets you is the right to pay huge legal fees to defend your copyright in the event you think someone has infringed on it. And if you unknowingly infringe on someone else's copyrighted material, you could be liable for damages.

    Patents are a different story, and those are for legitimate inventions -- not for sayings or designs on t-shirts.

    Please understand that I am not a lawyer and this should not be misconstrued as legal advice. If you are prepared to invest in copyright protection (and policing) you should consult with an attorney who specializes in patent and trademark law.
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 6/2/2015 at 3:15 PM Accepted
    You might want to read the following: https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/copyright-law
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 6/2/2015 at 3:44 PM Member
    First, I am not a lawyer and second, this is not legal advice.

    Copyright protects the right to copy and to reproduce an intellectual work (written text, and image,
    a song, etc).

    Copywriting refers to the the writing of copy (the writing of text) for sales and marketing purposes.

    While the pronunciations are the same, the end results are markedly different.

    It is my understanding that you retain all intellectual rights to copy and reproduce ANY written, visual, or aural material that you create from scratch and that you would retain and own all rights to reproduce and protect such works for your life time, plus 70 years (if you are in the United States. Please note that ALL copyright terms vary by nation state). Learn more about copyright in the united States here:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_law_of_the_United_States

    To trade mark a phrase or image you need to register said work with the US Patent and Trade Mark Office. more details here:

    https://www.uspto.gov

    Symbol use to indicate any and all copyrights that you hold and maintain works as follows:

    The ™ mark (which you'll sometimes see as an SM, which stands for "Service Mark") is an unofficial stamp to indicate you may be in the process of securing trade mark status to protect your intellectual property.

    The ® mark means hands off. You may ONLY use the ® symbol (the R indicates the item it is associated with is an officially Registered mark) once your intellectual property has been registered with the US Patent and Trade Mark Office. This takes time and incurs a fee.

    The © mark indicates that the owner of the intellectual property asserts and is prepared to protect and defend his or her rights to the material described as being their original work.

    Again, I am not a lawyer and second, this is not legal advice. To take this matter farther you are STRONGLY ADVISED to seek and retain appropriate legal counsel.


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