Issue 318 -June 19, 2007

Copyright Office Publishes Final Rule on Basic Registration Fee

The Copyright Office is publishing a final rule establishing a lower basic registration fee of $35 for copyright claims submitted electronically. This fee applies to all registrations where the application is submitted electronically, including those registrations where the deposit materials cannot be sent electronically together with the application. At the same time, the Office is retaining its current fee of $45 for processing paper applications for basic registration of a copyright claim. The dual fee structure reflects the reduced cost of processing electronic claims and serves as an incentive to the public to use the new online electronic registration system. On or after July 2, 2007, the Copyright Office will begin accepting a limited number of electronic submissions of copyright claims through the Internet. The new fee will apply to these applications. The adoption of the new rule assumes that no legislative action will take place before July 1, 2007. (Read further information.)

Copyright Office Extends Due Date for Reply Comments

The Copyright Office is extending the time in which reply comments can be filed in response to its Notice of Inquiry requesting information for the preparation of the Section 109 Report to the Congress, as required by the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004. The Office is providing additional time for filing reply comments to enable participants to have sufficient time to prepare their responses to the initial comments and testimony from the July hearing. Reply comments are now due by October 1, 2007. All other deadlines established in this proceeding remain the same. (Read further information.)