Public Domain facts

While investigating facts about Public Domain Images and Public Domain Music, I found out little known, but curios details like:

The people who falsely claimed the copyright to “Happy Birthday to You” made $2M a year for decades until the song was ruled public domain.

how public domain works?

In 1987 Jamie Lee Curtis invented and patented a diaper modification, a moisture proof pocket containing wipes for easy access. She refused to allow it to be marketed until companies started selling biodegradable diapers, the patent expired in 2007 and is now in the public domain.

What's public domain?

In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across answering what public domain images. Here are 50 of the best facts about Public Domain Movies and Public Domain Books I managed to collect.

what public domain means?

The people who falsely claimed the copyright on "Happy Birthday to You" made $2m USD a year for decades until a court ruled the song to be public domain in 2016
The film 'It's a Wonderful Life' was considered a box office failure upon release in 1946. A clerical error placed the film in the public domain in 1974 causing many local TV networks to play the film for free, popularising it as a Christmas classic.
Disney successfully lobbied Congress to extend the length of copyright protection in order to prevent Mickey Mouse from entering the public domain. The law was later referred to as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act
Robert Noyce passed up being the worlds first trillionaire by making his patent on silicon chips public domain. Thus allowing technological innovation leading to modern day electronics.
In 1914 Daniel Hess refused to sell the last bit of his property to the city of New York after the rest his property had been seized via eminent domain, and today it remains on the sidewalk with a tile that reads "Property of the Hess Estate Which Has Never Been Dedicated For Public Purposes"
Mickey Mouse is set to become public domain on January 1, 2024
The famous porn film "Debbie Does Dallas" is in public domain, due to the negligence of the production company.
In 1982, Universal Studios sued Nintendo on the grounds that Donkey Kong was an exact copy of Universal-alleged owned King Kong. The judge ruled that Universal acted in bad faith by threatening Nintendo's licensees and it had no right over King Kong due to being in public domain.
Mickey Mouse becomes public domain on January 1, 2024.
On January 1 2019, all works published in 1923 enter the public domain. This is the first public domain entrance of copyrighted material in 20 years.

public domain facts — What public-domain software?

Public Domain data charts

For your convenience take a look at Public Domain figures with stats and charts presented as graphic.

public domain fact data chart about Top 20 keywords in 6 public domain books, based on WF-IDF — Top 20 keywords in 6 public domain books, based on WF-IDF

Why is mickey mouse not public domain?

You can easily fact check why is night of the living dead public domain by examining the linked well-known sources.

Peter Pan has an Exception to Public Domain Law, so it can Continue to Fund a Children's Hospital

Despite many of their most popular movies (Tarzan, Hercules, Pinocchio, Sleeping Beauty) coming from the free public domain, the Walt Disney Company actively fights to make sure Mickey Mouse will never enter the public domain. - source

Doctor Who's Dalek enemies were featured in a 2003 WB movie 'Looney Toons: Back in Action' as the director assumed they were public domain. They aren't, leading to legal troubles. - source

The movie 'Charade' (1963) entered the public domain immediately upon release because Universal Pictures published it with an invalid copyright notice

Superman is due to enter the public domain by 2033. - source

When public domain images?

Because of a court ruling, any movie made prior to 1953 is public domain in Japan, including many Disney movies such as Song of the South, Fantasia, Snow White, Bambi, and Cinderella. You can tape them, sell it, and legally pocket any money you make.

How public domain is used?

Night of the Living Dead is in the public domain due to a failure to register its copyright

The copyright for Peter Pan is incredibly complicated. Which includes competing laws from the U.K. and the EU; where the U.K. says a children’s hospital owns the rights for forever and the EU saying it’s already public domain.

Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf" will lose it's copyright and enter the public domain on January 1, 2016. It can be rewritten or distributed by anyone in the world.

A small triangle in NYC about 27x25x27 inches was not accounted for in an eminent domain seizure in 1914. The owner installed a small mosaic which said "PROPERTY OF THE HESS ESTATE WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN DEDICATED FOR PUBLIC PURPOSES." It is still there today.

When does music become public domain?

A German judge ordered every copy of the film "Nosferatu" to be destroyed due to violating "Dracula's" copyright. Only one American print survived, as "Dracula" was in the public domain there. All modern copies of the film stem from this one print.

Even though the melody of "Happy Birthday to You" was created in 1893, and none of the early printed appearances of the melody and lyrics stated a copyright notice, Warner/Chappell Music managed to keep the song out of the public domain until a court ruling in 2016.

The classic zombie movie Night of the Living Dead is public domain because it failed to properly secure US copyright in 1968

One of Ayn Rand's books is in the public domain in the USA due to failure to renew copyright.

How to find out if a song is public domain?

Under US copyright law, the earliest that a work created by a corporation today would enter the public domain is the year 2111. Work originally copyrighted by an individual could conceivably remain proprietary into the 2170s.

According to UK Copyright Law, George Orwell's 1984 will enter public domain in 2020.

Steamboat Willie might be public domain - and Disney threatened to sue a student confirming so.

Universal Pictures failed to include a (c) in the credits of the 1963 Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn movie 'Charade'. As a result the film entered the public domain upon release in theaters.

Batman, Superman, The Hobbit, Mickey Mouse & King Kong Will All Be In The Public Domain By 2035

George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four is in the public domain in Canada, South Africa, Argentina, Australia, and Oman

The red "As Seen On TV" logo and phrase is now in the public domain and can be used on packaging or used in business with no fee and without trademark infringement.

Night of the Living Dead was entered into the public domain because the original distributor forgot to place a copyright notification in the film.

You rarely hear Happy Birthday on TV because the song was copyrighted from 1935 to 2014. In 2014 Time Warner paid 14 million to release the song to the public domain rather than face a lawsuit over their aggressive ownership of it which was netting them 2 million a year.

In the United States, copyright in a personal creation creation lasts the life of the author plus 75 years. In corporate works, the term is a flat 95 years. After that term expires, the work passes into the public domain.

Project Gutenberg. This Volunteer Effort has Digitized over 57,000 Books within Public Domain from throughout Human History for you to Read Online for Free

In 2015 Warner / Chappel settled out of court over the copyright of "Happy Birthday" and finally put the song in the public domain after decades of enforcing its alleged copyright to receive millions of dollars every year

This is our collection of basic interesting facts about Public Domain. The fact lists are intended for research in school, for college students or just to feed your brain with new realities. Possible use cases are in quizzes, differences, riddles, homework facts legend, cover facts, and many more. Whatever your case, learn the truth of the matter why is Public Domain so important!