Ask yahoo:
How long copyright lasts depends on when the work was created. The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 extended many copyrights by 20 years. Here are the details, straight from the Copyright Office FAQ:
For works created after January 1, 1978, copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years. In the case of a joint work, copyright lasts for 70 years after the last surviving author's death. For anonymous and pseudonymous works and works made for hire, copyright lasts 95 years from the year of first publication or 120 years from the year of creation, whichever ends first.
For works created but not published or registered before January 1, 1978, copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years, but it will not expire earlier than December 31, 2002. If the work is published before December 31, 2002, copyright will not expire before December 31, 2047.
For pre-1978 works still in their original or renewal term of copyright, copyright is extended to 95 years from the date that copyright was originally secured.
"The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998"
Gee, you'd never guess that Bono was an entertainer and copyright holder, would you?
The Constitution empowers the government "To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries."
This law goes *way* beyond that.
"For works created after January 1, 1978, copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years."
Should be "for twenty years following the creation of the work." Or maybe ten years.
"For anonymous and pseudonymous works and works made for hire, copyright lasts 95 years from the year of first publication or 120 years from the year of creation, whichever ends first."
If it's anonymous, whose name is on the copyright? And 120 years? Is that what the framers of the Constitution meant by "a limited time?" I don't think so.
"For pre-1978 works (Like everything Sonny and Cher did) still in their original or renewal term of copyright, copyright is extended to 95 years from the date that copyright was originally secured."
This law is mercantilism in a malignant form.
Everything the huge media conglomerates do could be done better and more cheaply, conferring great benefits on the public while providing reasonable protection for "authors and inventors," if not for these unconstitutional copyright laws.
The only thing these laws do is to protect the power of parasitic media conglomerates to shaft both the public and the actual creators of music and other entertainment. And with their power safely entrenched, these media conglomerates use it also to determine what the public sees and hears.
"The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 extended many copyrights by 20 years. Here are the details, straight from the Copyright Office FAQ:"
That's an awfull lot of work to go through to keep making money from "I Got/Had You Babe".
That's a correct outline of the copyright terms. Some other posters have pointed out that the extension was done on behalf of Disney, which is correct. The nickname for the "Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Act" is the "Mickey Mouse Copyright Law." It was passed in 1998 (after Bono's death) and signed into law by Beelzebubba himself. It only cost Michael Eisner about 600,000 in donations to campaign funds. Maybe if we raised a couple of million they'd change it back. Ha!