83 FR 22896 - Group Registration of Serials

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Copyright Office

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 96 (May 17, 2018)

Page Range		22896-22902
FR Document		2018-10422

The U.S. Copyright Office is proposing to update its regulation governing the group registration option for serials--works such as magazines and journals. The proposed rule will make a number of changes to reflect current Office practices, promote efficiency of the registration process, and encourage broader participation in the registration system by reducing the burden on applicants. Specifically, the proposed rule will require applicants to file an online application rather than a paper application, and upload a complete digital copy of each issue through the electronic registration system instead of submitting them in physical form. It will update the eligibility requirements for this group option in several respects, such as clarifying that each issue must be published under the same continuing title. In addition, the proposed rule will remove the requirement that the claimant provide the Library of Congress with two complimentary subscriptions to that serial as a condition for using the group registration option. Under the proposed rule, however, serial publishers will remain subject to the mandatory deposit requirement. Specifically, if a serial is published in the United States in a physical format, the publisher must send complimentary subscriptions to the Library, unless it is informed that the serial title is not needed for the Library's collection. Serials published only in electronic form will continue to be subject to the existing on-demand mandatory deposit regime. The Office invites public comment on these proposed changes.

Federal Register, Volume 83 Issue 96 (Thursday, May 17, 2018)

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 96 (Thursday, May 17, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 22896-22902]
From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10422]

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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

37 CFR Parts 201, 202

[Docket No. 2018-2]

Group Registration of Serials

AGENCY: U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Copyright Office is proposing to update its
regulation governing the group registration option for serials--works
such as magazines and journals. The proposed rule will make a number of
changes to reflect current Office practices, promote efficiency of the
registration process, and encourage broader participation in the
registration system by reducing the burden on applicants. Specifically,
the proposed rule will require applicants to file an online application
rather than a paper application, and upload a complete digital copy of
each issue through the electronic registration system instead of
submitting them in physical form. It will update the eligibility
requirements for this group option in several respects, such as
clarifying that each issue must be published under the same continuing
title. In addition, the proposed rule will remove the requirement that
the claimant provide the Library of Congress with two complimentary
subscriptions to that serial as a condition for using the group
registration option. Under the proposed rule, however, serial
publishers will remain subject to the mandatory deposit requirement.
Specifically, if a serial is published in the United States in a
physical format, the publisher must send complimentary subscriptions to
the Library, unless it is informed that the serial title is not needed
for the Library's collection. Serials published only in electronic form
will continue to be subject to the existing on-demand mandatory deposit
regime. The Office invites public comment on these proposed changes.

DATES: Comments must be made in writing and must be received in the
U.S. Copyright Office no later than June 18, 2018.

ADDRESSES: For reasons of government efficiency, the Copyright Office
is using the regulations.gov system for the submission and posting of
public comments in this proceeding. All comments are therefore to be
submitted electronically through regulations.gov. Specific instructions
for submitting comments are available on the Copyright Office website
at https://www.copyright.gov/rulemaking/group-serials/. If electronic
submission of comments is not feasible due to lack of access to a
computer and/or the internet, please contact the Office using the
contact information below for special instructions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert J. Kasunic, Associate Register
of Copyrights and Director of Registration Policy and Practice, or Erik
Bertin, Deputy Director of Registration Policy and Practice, by
telephone at 202-707-8040, or by email at rkas@loc.gov and
ebertin@loc.gov; or Cindy Paige Abramson, Assistant General Counsel, by
telephone at 202-707-0676, or by email at ciab@loc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

When Congress enacted the Copyright Act of 1976 (the ``Act''), it
authorized the Register of Copyrights (the ``Register'') to specify by
regulation the administrative classes of works for the purpose of
seeking a registration, and the nature of the deposits required for
each such class. See 17 U.S.C.408(c). In addition, Congress granted the
Register the discretion to allow groups of related works to be
registered with one application and one filing fee, a procedure known
as ``group registration.'' See 17 U.S.C. 408(c)(1). Congress recognized
that requiring applicants to submit separate applications for certain
types of works may be so burdensome and expensive that authors and
copyright owners may forgo registration altogether, since copyright
registration is not a prerequisite to copyright protection. H.R. Rep.
No. 94-1476, at 154 (1976); reprinted in 1976 U.S.C.C.A.N. 5659, 5770;
S. Rep. No. 94-473, at 136 (1975). Pursuant to the authority granted
from Congress, the Register has issued regulations permitting the U.S.
Copyright Office (the ``Office'') to issue a group registration for
limited categories of works, provided that certain conditions have been
met. See generally 37 CFR 202.3(b)(5),(6), (9), 202.4(e), (g)-(i), (k).

II. The Existing Group Registration Option for Serials

In 1991, the Office began offering a group registration option for
serials.\1\ 55 FR 50556 (Dec. 7, 1990). A ``serial'' is defined as a
``work issued or intended to be issued in successive parts bearing
numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued
indefinitely,'' such as periodicals, magazines, and journals. 37 CFR
202.3(b)(1)(v).
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\1\ Subsequently, the Office created separate group registration
options for daily newspapers and daily newsletters. 57 FR 39615
(Sept. 1, 1992); 60 FR 15874 (Mar. 28, 1995). While such works meet
the regulatory definition of ``serials,'' see 37 CFR 202.3(b)(1)(v),
they could not be registered under the existing serial group
registration option because that option was limited to serials
published at intervals of a week or longer. See 55 FR at 50556. The
Office has recently updated its regulations regarding the group
registration of newspapers, 83 FR 4144 (Jan. 30, 2018), and plans to
issue a proposed rule relating to the group registration of
newsletters.
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The current group registration option for serials has a number of
requirements, which are listed in different areas of the Code of
Federal Regulations and in various Office publications. Specifically,
applicants may use the group option (i) if the serial is ``published at
intervals of a week or longer''; (ii) if the issues are ``published in
the same calendar year''; (iii) if the ``application covers no more
than the issues published in a given three month period''; and (iv) if
the issues are ``created no more than one year prior to publication.''
37 CFR 202.3(b)(6)(i), (i)(B), (i)(G). The applicant must include a
``minimum [of] 2 issues'' in each submission, id. Sec. 201.3(c)(6),
and may register the works using the online application designated for
groups of serial issues, or submit a paper application on Form SE/
Group, id. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(v). In addition, ``[t]he claim to
copyright for which registration is sought'' must be ``in the
collective work''; the collective work must be a work made for hire;
``[t]he collective work authorship'' must be ``essentially new material
that is being published for the first time''; and ``[t]he author(s) and
claimant(s) of the collective work'' must be ``the same person(s) or
organization(s).'' Id. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(i)(C)-(F). The applicant must
also submit a deposit consisting of one complete copy of the best
edition of each issue included in the group registration.\2\ Id. Sec.
202.3(b)(6)(v)(A)(3), B(3).
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\2\ The ``best edition'' of a work is ``the edition, published
in the United States at any time before the date of deposit, that
the Library of Congress determines to be the most suitable for its
purposes.'' 37 CFR 202.19(b)(1)(i).

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[[Page 22897]]

The regulation also contains several provisions that are intended
to help bolster the Library's collections. To use the group
registration option, ``two complimentary subscriptions . . . must be
entered and maintained in the name of the Library of Congress,'' and
applicants ``must submit a letter affirming that two complimentary
subscriptions to the particular serial have been entered for the
Library of Congress.'' Id. Sec. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(ii),
202.20(c)(2)(xvii). Moreover, the complimentary copies ``must be
submitted regularly and promptly after publication,'' mailed to the
Office, and received ``promptly after publication of each issue of the
serial.'' Id. Sec. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(i)(A), (iii), 202.20(c)(2)(xvii).
If the publisher does not comply with these requirements, the Register
``may revoke the privilege'' of using the group registration option.\3\
Id. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(iv).
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\3\ When the Office published the regulation in the Federal
Register it stated that providing ``two complimentary subscription
copies will satisfy the mandatory deposit requirement of section
407,'' although this was not mentioned in the regulation itself. See
55 FR 50556.
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The Office adopted an interim practice for mandatory deposit of
serials because the Library does not desire all registered serials for
its collections. The interim practice is reflected in the ``help text''
for the online application, the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office
Practices, Third Edition, and Circular 62B: Copyright Registration for
a Group of Serial Issues, though not in the Office's regulations. Under
the interim practice, the Office encourages applicants to contact the
Copyright Acquisitions Division (``CAD'') prior to submitting an
application to determine if the Library has selected that serial for
its collections. If the Library has selected the serial, CAD will
notify the applicant in writing and provide instructions for seeking a
group registration and for mailing complimentary subscription copies to
the Library. If the serial has not been selected, CAD will notify the
applicant that it may use the group registration option without
providing subscription copies. See Copyright Office, Compendium of U.S.
Copyright Office Practices sec. 1109.5(A) (3d ed. 2017) (hereinafter
the ``Compendium''); Circular 62b: Copyright Registration for a Group
of Serial Issues at 2-3 (hereinafter ``Circular 62b''); Help: Serial
Issues (http://www.copyright.gov/eco/help-serial.html).
In addition to the above practices, Form SE/Group and Office
publications list additional requirements for the group registration
option for serials. Specifically, the instructions for Form SE/Group
state that each issue must be published under the same continuing
title, and the applicant must provide a publication date for each
issue. These requirements have appeared in Form SE/Group since at least
February 2000. In addition, the Compendium, and Circular 62b state that
the letter to the Office affirming the complimentary subscription
should include the name of the publisher, the title of the serial, and
the volume, number, issue date, or other identifying information that
appear on the first issue that will be delivered to the Library. See
Compendium sec. 1109.5(A), Circular 62b.

III. The Current Rule Governing Mandatory Deposit of Serials

Section 407 of the Copyright Act states that if a work is published
in the United States, the copyright owner or the owner of the exclusive
right of publication must affirmatively deposit two copies of the
``best edition'' of that work with the Library within three months
after publication. 17 U.S.C. 407(a)-(b). This is known as the
``mandatory deposit'' requirement. As a general rule, publishers may
satisfy this requirement by registering their works with the Office, or
by sending copies to the Copyright Office's Copyright Acquisitions
Division (``CAD'') without seeking a registration. If a publisher fails
to comply with the mandatory deposit requirement, the Office may issue
a written demand for those works, and if the required copies are not
received within three months thereafter, the copyright owner or owner
of the exclusive right of publication in that work may be subject to
fines or other monetary liability. See id. 407(d). The Office has the
authority to establish regulations governing mandatory deposit,
including regulations to exempt any categories of material from the
deposit requirements. See id. 407(c), 702.
Serials published in a physical format (including works published
both in physical and electronic formats) are subject to these
affirmative mandatory deposit requirements. By contrast, in 2010, the
Office adopted an interim rule that established a different process for
serials published solely in electronic form. The interim rule
established a general exemption for most ``[e]lectronic works published
in the United States and available only online,'' except for serials
published solely in electronic formats (i.e., ``electronic-only''
serials). 37 CFR 202.19(c)(5). For electronic-only serials, there is no
affirmative obligation to deposit works with the Copyright Office.
Instead, if the Library desires a particular serial title for its
collections, the Office will issue a written demand requiring the
publisher to deposit copies of those serials. 37 CFR 202.24.
Under the current regulations, the mandatory deposit requirements
for electronic-only serials are significantly different than the
registration deposit and submission requirements governing the group
registration option for serials. For purposes of mandatory deposit,
publishers are required to submit an electronic copy in a specific
format, together with certain types of metadata that may be embodied in
the copy. 37 CFR pt. 202, app. B, sec. IX. In addition, publishers must
comply with certain ``[t]echnical standards'' when they submit their
electronic works to the Office. 37 CFR pt. 202, app. B, sec. IX.

IV. The Proposed Rule

The existing regulations governing group registration of serials
require updating. As noted above, the various rules that govern that
group registration option are scattered across the Code of Federal
Regulations, the Compendium, the relevant Circular, and the online help
text for the eCO system. Accordingly, the Office is proposing to amend
the regulation governing the group registration option for serials to
centralize and streamline the eligibility requirements.\4\
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\4\ The proposed rule also corrects an unrelated error in the
preamble to the Best Edition Statement. The preamble states that
``[f]or works first published only in a country other than the
United States, the law requires the deposit of the best edition as
first published.'' 37 CFR, pt. 202, app. B. That is inconsistent
with section 101 of the Copyright Act, which defines ``best
edition'' as ``the edition, published in the United States at any
time before the date of deposit,'' and section 408(b)(3), which
states that ``in the case of a work first published outside the
United States,'' the applicant should submit ``one complete copy or
phonorecord as so published.'' 17 U.S.C. 101, 408(b)(3) (emphasis
added).
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In addition, the existing group registration regulations do not
accurately reflect the Office's current practices relating to mandatory
deposit. The existing rule contemplates that registration examiners
will confirm with the Library on an ongoing basis either that group
registration applicants are continuing to provide serial subscriptions
to the Library, or that they are exempt from that requirement. In
practice, this does not happen; instead the registration examiners do
not confirm whether or not subscriptions have been provided. In
addition, the group registration regulations by their terms contemplate
the provision of

[[Page 22898]]

physical subscription copies to the Library for all serial titles that
the Library wants to include in its collections. But for one category
of serial titles--electronic-only serials--this rule does not apply in
practice. Electronic-only serials are not obtained by the Library
through subscriptions, but through a separate demand-based scheme.\5\
The proposed rule separates and clarifies the registration and
mandatory deposit requirements for serials, including by making the
subscription requirement part of the mandatory deposit regulations.\6\
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\5\ 37 CFR 202.24.
\6\ The Copyright Office plans to take the same approach to
registrations of single serial issues, and plans to issue an NPRM
that, among other things, proposes that deposits provided with
single serial issue applications will only satisfy the deposit
requirements of section 408, and will not satisfy the mandatory
deposit requirements in section 407.
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To summarize, the proposed rule would do the following things:
(1) The rule would codify the requirement (currently found only in
the Compendium) that, to be eligible for the serial group registration
option, each serial issue in the group must be an ``all-new''
collective work that has not been previously published, and each issue
must be fixed and distributed as a discrete, self-contained collective
work.
(2) The rule would memorialize the Office's longstanding position
regarding the scope of a registration for a group of serial issues--
i.e., a registration for a group of serial issues covers each issue in
the group, as well as the articles, photographs, illustrations, or
other contributions appearing within each issue--if they are fully
owned by the copyright claimant and if they were first published in
those issues).
(3) The rule would require applicants to register their serials
through the Office's electronic registration system, and discontinue
the existing paper application.
(4) The rule would amend the deposit requirements by requiring
applicants to upload their serials in digital form through the
electronic registration system. The Office will no longer accept
physical copies, such as a print copy or photocopy of each issue in the
group, or digital copies that have been saved onto a flash drive, disc,
or other physical storage medium that is delivered to the Office.
(5) Serial publishers would no longer be required to provide
complimentary subscriptions to the Library as a condition for using the
group registration option, and the Register would no longer revoke the
privilege of using the group registration option if the applicant fails
to provide complimentary subscriptions. But the rule would also make
clear that electronic deposits submitted to the Office through the
registration system will not satisfy the mandatory deposit requirements
in section 407. Specifically, if a serial is published in the United
States in a physical format, the publisher must provide the Library
with two complimentary subscriptions to the serial, unless they are
informed that the serial title is not needed for the Library's
collections. Serials published only in electronic form will continue to
be subject to the existing on-demand mandatory deposit regime.
(6) The rule would clarify that applicants must include at least
two issues in each group registration, and maintains the requirements
that each issue in the group must be a work made for hire, and the
author and copyright claimant for each issue must be the same person or
organization. 37 CFR 202.3(b)(6)(i)(E), (F).
(7) The rule would retain the requirement that applicants may only
register serials that are ``published at intervals of a week or
longer'' (e.g., weekly, every two weeks, monthly). The rule would also
retain the requirement that all of the issues included in one
application be ``published in a given three month period'' \7\ and ``in
the same calendar year.'' \8\ To help reinforce these longstanding
requirements, the rule would expressly mandate that the issues be
published under the same continuing title and bear issue dates within
the three-month period specified in the application.\9\ For similar
reasons, the rule would specifically require the applicant to provide a
publication date for each issue in the group.
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\7\ Quarterly and semi-annual publications are not eligible for
this group option, because the regulations expressly state that the
applicant must submit at least two issues, and all the issues must
be published within a three-month period. The Office's rationale for
creating the group registration option (i.e., to encourage
registration of frequently published serials by reducing the burden
on applicants) does not apply in the case of such infrequently
published serials.
\8\ See 37 CFR 202.3(b)(6)(i), (i)(B), (i)(G).
\9\ In this respect, the proposed rule is similar to the
regulations governing the group registration options for newspapers
and newsletters, which state that the issues must be published
within a single calendar month and bear issue dates within that
month. See 37 CFR 202.3 (b)(9)(v), 202.4(e)(4).
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(8) The proposed rule will eliminate the requirement that ``[e]ach
issue must have been created no more than one year prior to
publication,'' id. Sec. 202.3(b)(6)(i)(G), as the Office has not
monitored or enforced this requirement in practice.
The next sections discuss those changes warranting more discussion.

A. Only ``All-New,'' Discrete and Self-Contained Collective Works
Eligible for Registration

The proposed rule clarifies that each serial issue in the group
must be an all-new collective work.\10\ A serial will be considered a
collective work if it contains ``a number of contributions'' that
constitute ``separate and independent works in themselves,'' and if the
contributions are ``assembled into a collective whole'' ``in such a way
that the resulting work as a whole constitutes an original work of
authorship.'' 17 U.S.C. 101 (definitions of ``collective work'' and
``compilation''). A serial issue may qualify as an ``all-new''
collective work if it contains a sufficient amount of new compilation
authorship. In other words, the issues included in the group cannot be
derivative versions of a previously published issue or a serial that is
frequently modified, updated, or adapted.
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\10\ Currently, this requirement appears only in the Compendium.
See Compendium sec. 1109.2.
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To be eligible for this group registration option, the serial must
also be fixed and distributed as a discrete, self-contained collective
work.\11\ An applicant may satisfy this requirement if the serial as a
whole is fixed in a tangible medium of expression, and the content of
each issue does not change once it has been distributed. For example, a
publisher that emails an electronically printed (``ePrint'') serial to
its subscribers may satisfy this requirement if each issue contains a
fixed selection of content, such as a PDF version of a physical
publication.
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\11\ Similar language appears in the Compendium. See Compendium
sec. 1113.
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By contrast, a website would not satisfy this requirement. Websites
typically add, archive, and/or replace content on a continuing basis.
As such, they are not fixed and distributed as discrete, self-contained
collective works. Moreover, these updates are rarely distributed on an
established schedule, and rarely contain numerical or chronological
designations distinguishing one update from the next. For this reason,
websites are not considered ``serials'' for purposes of
registration.\12\
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\12\ See 37 CFR 202.3(b)(1)(v) (defining a ``serial'' as ``a
work issued or intended to be issued in successive parts bearing
numerical or chronological designations''); see also 75 FR 3863,
3865 (Jan. 25, 2010) (noting that works ``that are constantly
updated with no demarcations between particular, discrete issues of
the publication'' are not considered serials).
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Although the proposed rule does not extend to websites, the Office
is aware of the need for establishing new and

[[Page 22899]]

updated practices for examining and registering online works. See,
e.g., Comments of Newspaper Association of America (urging the Office
to create a group registration option for newspaper websites),
available at http://www.copyright.gov/rulemaking/online-only/comments/naa.pdf; Comments of the National Writers Union, Western Writers of
America, and American Society of Journalists and Authors (urging the
Office to create a group registration option for multiple works
published online on different dates), available at https://www.regulations.gov/contentStreamer?documentId=COLC-2016-0005-0009&attachmentNumber=1&disposition=attachment&contentType=pdf; see
also 81 FR 86634, 86636-37 (Dec. 1, 2016); 81 FR 86643, 86646 (Dec. 1,
2016). The Office is considering these issues and will take them into
account when developing its priorities for future upgrades to the
electronic registration system.

B. Scope of Protection

The proposed rule clarifies that a registration for a group of
serials covers each issue in the group, and each issue will be
registered as a separate collective work. In other words, the group
registration is treated as the legal equivalent of a separate
collective work registration for each serial issue.
As a general rule, a registration for a collective work covers the
individual contributions contained within that work if they are fully
owned by the copyright claimant and if they were first published in
that work.\13\ Because a registration for a group of serial issues
effectively is treated as a separate collective work registration for
each issue in the group, a group registration also covers the articles,
photographs, illustrations, or other contributions appearing within
each issue--if they are fully owned by the copyright claimant at the
time the application was filed and if they were first published in
those issues. See 55 FR at 50557 (stating that publishers may
``register claims in individual contributions published for the first
time in the serial, if the publisher has obtained ownership of the
copyright''). By contrast, if an issue contains contributions that are
not fully owned by the copyright claimant, and/or contributions that
were previously published, the registration will not extend to those
works. See Morris v. Business Concepts, Inc., 259 F.3d 65, 71 (2d Cir.
2001) (``Unless the copyright owner of a collective work also owns all
the rights in a constituent part, a collective work registration will
not extend to the constituent part.''), abrogated on other grounds by
Reed Elsevier, Inc. v. Muchnick, 559 U.S. 154, 160 (2010).
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\13\ See, e.g., Alaska Stock, LLC v. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub. Co., 747 F.3d 673, 683 (9th Cir. 2014); Morris v. Bus.
Concepts, Inc., 259 F.3d 65, 68 (2d Cir. 2001); Compendium secs.
509.1, 509.2; see also 17 U.S.C. 201(c) (``Copyright in each
separate contribution to a collective work is distinct from
copyright in the collective work as a whole, and vests initially in
the author of the contribution. In the absence of an express
transfer of the copyright or of any rights under it, the owner of
copyright in the collective work is presumed to have acquired only
the privilege of reproducing and distributing the contribution as
part of that particular collective work . . . .'').
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With respect to the information collected as part of a group
registration and examination practices, the Office must balance the
public interest in creating a meaningful record (i.e., collecting
information regarding each individual contribution within a serial
issue) with the relative burden on applicants wishing to participate in
the registration system. When an applicant submits up to three months
of serial issues for registration, it is difficult to collect granular
information concerning the individual articles, photographs, and other
component works within each issue. Requiring applicants to identify the
author and title of each individual contribution would impose a
significant burden both on applicants and the Office alike. This would
discourage registration, which in turn, would diminish the value of the
Office's public record. Imposing these burdens would also be contrary
to the Congressional purpose of providing the Office with the authority
to create group registration options: To ease the registration of
certain works.
Accordingly, the Office's current application form for a group of
serial issues does not allow for the applicant to expressly assert a
claim in the individual contributions appearing within each issue,
provide titles, authors, or other identifying information for each
contribution, or identify component works created by a third party and
transferred to the claimant by written agreement. But the Office
foresees the future possibility of applicants submitting metadata for
the component works appearing within each issue, and the possibility of
the Office incorporating this information into the registration record.
If this becomes feasible once the Office implements its next-generation
registration system, it may require this type of information as a
condition for using this group registration option.
When the examiner reviews each serial issue, he or she will examine
the issue as a whole to determine if it contains sufficient compilation
authorship to warrant registration. And the examiner will review the
serial issue to determine whether it contains ``a number of
contributions'' constituting ``separate and independent works in
themselves.'' 17 U.S.C. 101 (definition of ``collective work''). When
the Office issues a group registration, the certificate will identify
the title, author, and claimant for each serial issue in the group, but
it will not identify the titles, authors, or claimants for the
individual contributions appearing within those issues.
The scope of protection for a group registration issued under the
proposed rule will have two consequences in infringement actions.
First, a group registration may be used to satisfy the statutory
requirements for instituting an infringement action involving any of
the serial issues that were included within the group, or any of the
individual contributions appearing within those issues--provided that
the claimant fully owned those contributions at the time the
application for registration is submitted, and provided that the
contributions were first published in one of those issues.\14\ 17
U.S.C. 411(a).
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\14\ Alternatively, a plaintiff may satisfy this statutory
requirement if the Office refused registration, provided that the
plaintiff serves a copy of the complaint on the Register of
Copyrights. 17 U.S.C. 411(a).
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Second, the proposed rule also clarifies that the group as a whole
is not considered a compilation, a collective work, or a derivative
work. Instead, the group is merely an administrative classification
created solely for the purpose of registering multiple collective works
with one application and one filing fee. The chronological selection,
coordination, and arrangement of the issues within the group is
entirely dictated by the regulatory requirements for this option.
Likewise, when a group of serial issues are combined for the purpose of
facilitating registration, those works are not ``recast, transformed,
or adapted'' in any way, and the group as a whole is not ``a work based
upon one or more preexisting works'' because there is no copyrightable
authorship in simply collecting a month of issues and arranging them in
chronological order. 17 U.S.C. 101 (definition of ``derivative work'').

C. Online Registration Requirement

The current regulation states that applicants may register their
works with the online application designated for groups of serial
issues, or in the alternative, they may submit a paper application
using Form SE/Group. 37

[[Page 22900]]

CFR 202.3(b)(6)(v). Under the proposed rule, applicants will be
required to use the electronic application designated for a group of
serial issues as a condition for seeking a group registration. The
Office will no longer accept groups of serial issues submitted for
registration on paper using Form SE/Group.\15\ If, after the effective
date of this rule, such paper applications are received, the Office
will refuse registration and instruct the applicant to resubmit the
claim through the electronic system. The Office invites comment on this
proposal, including whether the Office should eliminate the paper
application for serial issues, phase it out after a specified period of
time, or continue to offer Form SE/Group for applicants who prefer to
use the paper-based system.
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\15\ Because the Office is proposing to eliminate Form SE/Group
and require applicants to submit their claims through the electronic
registration system, the term ``SE/Group'' will soon be obsolete.
Going forward, the Office will refer to this registration option as
``GR/SE,'' which stands for ``group registration of serials.'' In
addition, the Office recently issued a final rule that requires
applicants to file an online application in order to correct or
amplify the information set forth in a basic registration for any
work capable of being registered through the electronic system,
rather than filing a paper application. 82 FR 27424 (June 15, 2017).
This online filing requirement will apply to supplementary
registrations for groups of serial issues--even if the issues were
originally registered using Form SE/Group. See 81 FR 86656, 86657
n.3 (Dec. 1, 2016).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Office's decision to offer a group option is entirely
discretionary, and Congress gave the Office broad authority to
establish the requirements for these types of claims. 17 U.S.C.
408(c)(1). Currently, the vast majority of the claims submitted on Form
SE/Group require correspondence or other action from the Office, which
increases overall pendency and contributes to the Office's backlog of
pending claims. For example, applicants routinely file claims that are
not eligible for this group option, fail to provide information
expressly requested on the form, or add extraneous information that is
not requested. In each case, however, the Office must first scan these
paper applications into the registration system and input the relevant
information by hand before an examiner can reject the application as
having been improperly filed. This is a cumbersome, labor-intensive
process. In many cases, the Office must contact the applicant to
request additional information or permission to correct the
application.
Addressing these issues imposes significant burdens on the Office's
limited resources, and has had an adverse effect on the examination of
other types of works within the Literary Division of the Registration
Program. Eliminating the paper application should mitigate many of
these problems. Among other improvements, the online application
contains automated validations that prevent applicants from submitting
applications that fail to comply with the eligibility requirements for
this group option, such as submitting a single issue rather than a
group of two or more issues.
For these reasons, the Office believes that requiring applicants to
submit online applications is necessary to improve the overall
efficiency of the group registration process.

D. Digital Registration Deposits

As noted above, the proposed rule will require applicants to submit
a complete copy of each serial issue in the group in digital form and
upload each issue through the electronic system. Requiring applicants
to upload digital copies to the electronic system will increase the
efficiency of the group registration process. The Office does not need
physical copies to examine a serial for copyrightable authorship, or to
determine whether the applicant satisfied the formal and legal
requirements for this group option. See 17 U.S.C. 410(a) (providing
that the Register of Copyrights must determine whether ``material
deposited [for registration] constitutes copyrightable subject
matter''). Electronic submissions also take less time to process, and
are easier to track and handle than physical copies. A registration
specialist can examine a digital copy as soon as it has been uploaded
to the electronic registration system. By contrast, when an applicant
submits an online application and mails a physical deposit to the
Office, it may take weeks to connect the application with the correct
deposit. In addition, each copy must be moved multiple times during the
examination process.
Requiring digital uploads may also provide serial publishers with
certain legal benefits. When the Office registers a group of serials
and issues a certificate of registration, the effective date of
registration is the date on which the Office received the application,
filing fee, and deposit in proper form. When an applicant uploads a
digital copy of the deposit to the electronic system, the Office
typically receives the application, filing fee, and deposit on the same
date. By contrast, when an applicant sends physical copies to the
Office the deposit may arrive long after the date that the application
and filing fee were received--thereby establishing a later effective
date of registration.
Moreover, if an applicant uploads a complete copy of the serial
through the electronic registration system, the Office will retain a
digital copy of those issues in its repository of electronic deposits.
Digital copies are much easier to store and retrieve. This is critical
if the copyright owner or other interested parties need to obtain a
copy of a particular issue for use in litigation or another legitimate
purpose.\16\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\16\ The Office recognizes that some publishers may not have a
digital copy of their issues or may find it difficult to create a
digital copy for the purpose of seeking a group registration. The
Office will address these concerns on a case-by-case basis. If an
applicant is unable to upload a particular newsletter to the
electronic system, the applicant may request special relief from the
deposit requirements under 37 CFR 202.20(d).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

E. Mandatory Deposit

Although the proposed rule eliminates the requirement to provide
subscriptions or microfilm as a condition of using the group
registration option, serials will still be subject to the mandatory
deposit requirement under section 407.
To assist publishers with complying with these mandatory deposit
requirements, the proposed rule amends the Office's mandatory deposit
regulations, 37 CFR 202.19, to provide specific rules for serials that
are published in the United States in a physical format, or in both a
physical and electronic format.\17\ Publishers will be expected to
provide the Library with two complimentary subscriptions to such
serials, unless they have been informed by CAD that the serial title is
not needed for the Library's collections. If subscription copies are
not received within three months after publication of each issue, CAD
may issue a written demand for ongoing subscriptions to that
publication. The failure to provide subscription copies when demanded
by the Office would subject the owner to penalties under section 407.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\17\ The same proposal is being made as part of the notice of
proposed rulemaking relating to group registration of newsletters.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

No change is being made to the mandatory deposit scheme for
electronic-only serials; such serials will continue to be subject to
the existing, demand-based mandatory deposit scheme.\18\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

\18\ See 37 CFR 202.19(c)(5), 202.24(a).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

IV. Conclusion

The proposed rule will encourage broader participation in the
registration system, and increase the efficiency of the process for
both the Office and copyright owners alike, while providing the Library
with a means for adding serials to its collections through mandatory
deposit. The Office invites

[[Page 22901]]

public comment on all of these proposed changes.

List of Subjects

37 CFR Part 201

37 CFR Part 202

Proposed Regulation

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Copyright Office
proposes amending 37 CFR parts 201 and 202 as follows:

PART 201--GENERAL PROVISIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 201 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 17 U.S.C. 702.

0
2. Amend Sec. 201.1 by revising paragraph (c)(6) to read as follows:

Sec. 201.1 Communication with the Copyright Office.

* * * * *
(c) * * *
(6) Mandatory Deposit Copies. Mandatory deposit copies of published
works submitted for the Library of Congress under 17 U.S.C. 407 and
Sec. 202.19 of this chapter (including complimentary subscriptions to
serial publications), and newspaper microfilm copies submitted under
Sec. 202.4(e) of this chapter, should be addressed to: Library of
Congress, U.S. Copyright Office, Attn: 407 Deposits, 101 Independence
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20559-6600.
* * * * *
0
3. Amend Sec. 201.3 by revising paragraph (c)(6) to read as follows:

Sec. 201.3 Fees for registration, recordation, and related services,
special services, and services performed by the Licensing Division.

* * * * *
(c) * * *
(6) Registration of a claim in a group of serials (per issue,
minimum two issues)
* * * * *

PART 202--PREREGISTRATION AND REGISTRATION OF CLAIMS TO COPYRIGHT

0
4. The authority citation for part 202 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 17 U.S.C. 408(f), 702.

Sec. 202.3 [Amended]

0
5. Amend Sec. 202.3 by removing and reserving paragraph (b)(6).
0
6. Amend Sec. 202.4 as follows by adding paragraph (d) and revising
the first sentence of paragraph (n) to read as follows.

Sec. 202.4 Group Registration.

* * * * *
(d) Group registration of serials. Pursuant to the authority
granted by 17 U.S.C. 408(c)(1), the Register of Copyrights has
determined that a group of serial issues may be registered with one
application, the required deposit, and the filing fee required by Sec.
201.3(c) of this chapter, if the following conditions are met:
(1) Eligible works. (i) All the issues in the group must be
serials.
(ii) The group must include at least two issues.
(iii) Each issue in the group must be an all-new collective work
that has not been previously published, each issue must be fixed and
distributed as a discrete, self-contained collective work, and the
claim in each issue must be limited to the collective work.
(iv) Each issue in the group must be a work made for hire, and the
author and claimant for each issue must be the same person or
organization.
(v) All of the issues in the group must be published at intervals
of a week or longer.
(vi) All of the issues must be published within three months, under
the same continuing title, within the same calendar year, bearing issue
dates within those months, and the applicant must specify the date of
publication for each issue in the group.
(2) Application. The applicant must complete and submit the online
application designated for a group of serial issues. The application
may be submitted by any of the parties listed in Sec. 202.3(c)(1).
(3) Deposit. The applicant must submit one complete copy of each
issue that is included in the group. The issues must be submitted in
digital form, and each issue must be contained in a separate electronic
file. The applicant must use the file-naming convention and submit
digital files in accordance with instructions specified on the
Copyright Office's website. The files must be submitted in Portable
Document Format (PDF), they must be assembled in an orderly form, and
they must be uploaded to the electronic registration system as
individual electronic files (i.e., not .zip files). The files must be
viewable and searchable, contain embedded fonts, and be free from any
access restrictions (such as those implemented through digital rights
management) that prevent the viewing and examination of the work. The
file size for each uploaded file must not exceed 500 megabytes, but
files may be compressed to comply with this requirement. Copies
submitted under this paragraph will be considered solely for the
purpose of registration under section 408 of title 17 of the United
States Code, and will not satisfy the mandatory deposit requirement
under section 407 of title 17 of the United States Code.
* * * * *
(n) * * * When the Office issues a group registration under
paragraph (d) or (e) of this section, the registration covers each
issue in the group and each issue is registered as a separate
collective work. * * *
0
7. Amend Sec. 202.19 by adding paragraph (d)(2)(x) to read as follows:

Sec. 202.19 Deposit of published copies or phonorecords for the
Library of Congress.

* * * * *
(d) * * *
(2) * * *
(x) In the case of serials (as defined in Sec. 202.3(b)(1)(v), but
excluding newspapers) published in the United States in a physical
format, or in both a physical and an electronic format, the copyright
owner or the owner of the exclusive right of publication must provide
the Library of Congress with two complimentary subscriptions to the
serial, unless the Copyright Acquisitions Division informs the owner
that the serial is not needed for the Library's collections.
Subscription copies must be physically mailed to the Copyright Office,
at the address for mandatory deposit copies specified in Sec. 201.1(c)
of this chapter, promptly after the publication of each issue, and the
subscription(s) must be maintained on an ongoing basis. The owner may
cancel the subscription(s) if the serial is no longer published by the
owner, if the serial is no longer published in the United States in a
physical format, or if the Copyright Acquisitions Division informs the
owner that the serial is no longer needed for the Library's
collections. In addition, prior to commencing the subscriptions, the
owner must send a letter to the Copyright Acquisitions Division at the
address specified in Sec. 201.1(b) of this chapter confirming that the
owner will provide the requested number of subscriptions for the
Library of Congress. The letter must include the name of the publisher,
the title of the newsletter, the International Standard Serial Number
(``ISSN'') that has been assigned to the newsletter (if any), and the
issue date and the numerical or chronological designations that appear
on the first issue that will be provided under the subscriptions.
* * * * *

[[Page 22902]]

Sec. 202.20 [Amended]

0
8. Amend Sec. 202.20 by removing and reserving paragraph (c)(2)(xvii).

Appendix B to Part 202 [Amended]

0
9. In Appendix B to Part 202, remove the sentence ``(For works first
published only in a country other than the United States, the law
requires the deposit of the best edition as first published.)'' and
replace with ``(For works first published only in a country other than
the United States, the law requires the deposit of the work as first
published.)''

Dated: May 10, 2018.
Sarang Vijay Damle,
General Counsel and Associate Register of Copyrights.
[FR Doc. 2018-10422 Filed 5-16-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1410-30-P

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 96 / Thursday, May 17, 2018 / Proposed Rules 22897

The regulation also contains several In addition to the above practices, 37 CFR 202.19(c)(5). For electronic-only
provisions that are intended to help Form SE/Group and Office publications serials, there is no affirmative obligation
bolster the Library’s collections. To use list additional requirements for the to deposit works with the Copyright
the group registration option, ‘‘two group registration option for serials. Office. Instead, if the Library desires a
complimentary subscriptions . . . must Specifically, the instructions for Form particular serial title for its collections,
be entered and maintained in the name SE/Group state that each issue must be the Office will issue a written demand
of the Library of Congress,’’ and published under the same continuing requiring the publisher to deposit copies
applicants ‘‘must submit a letter title, and the applicant must provide a of those serials. 37 CFR 202.24.
affirming that two complimentary publication date for each issue. These Under the current regulations, the
subscriptions to the particular serial requirements have appeared in Form mandatory deposit requirements for
have been entered for the Library of SE/Group since at least February 2000. electronic-only serials are significantly
Congress.’’ Id. §§ 202.3(b)(6)(ii), In addition, the Compendium, and different than the registration deposit
202.20(c)(2)(xvii). Moreover, the Circular 62b state that the letter to the and submission requirements governing
complimentary copies ‘‘must be Office affirming the complimentary the group registration option for serials.
submitted regularly and promptly after subscription should include the name of For purposes of mandatory deposit,
publication,’’ mailed to the Office, and the publisher, the title of the serial, and publishers are required to submit an
received ‘‘promptly after publication of the volume, number, issue date, or other electronic copy in a specific format,
each issue of the serial.’’ Id. identifying information that appear on together with certain types of metadata
§§ 202.3(b)(6)(i)(A), (iii), the first issue that will be delivered to that may be embodied in the copy. 37
the Library. See Compendium sec. CFR pt. 202, app. B, sec. IX. In addition,
202.20(c)(2)(xvii). If the publisher does
1109.5(A), Circular 62b. publishers must comply with certain
not comply with these requirements, the
‘‘[t]echnical standards’’ when they
Register ‘‘may revoke the privilege’’ of III. The Current Rule Governing submit their electronic works to the
using the group registration option.3 Id. Mandatory Deposit of Serials Office. 37 CFR pt. 202, app. B, sec. IX.
§ 202.3(b)(6)(iv). Section 407 of the Copyright Act
The Office adopted an interim states that if a work is published in the IV. The Proposed Rule
practice for mandatory deposit of serials United States, the copyright owner or The existing regulations governing
because the Library does not desire all the owner of the exclusive right of group registration of serials require
registered serials for its collections. The publication must affirmatively deposit updating. As noted above, the various
interim practice is reflected in the ‘‘help two copies of the ‘‘best edition’’ of that rules that govern that group registration
text’’ for the online application, the work with the Library within three option are scattered across the Code of
Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office months after publication. 17 U.S.C. Federal Regulations, the Compendium,
Practices, Third Edition, and Circular 407(a)–(b). This is known as the the relevant Circular, and the online
62B: Copyright Registration for a Group ‘‘mandatory deposit’’ requirement. As a help text for the eCO system.
of Serial Issues, though not in the general rule, publishers may satisfy this Accordingly, the Office is proposing to
Office’s regulations. Under the interim requirement by registering their works amend the regulation governing the
practice, the Office encourages with the Office, or by sending copies to group registration option for serials to
applicants to contact the Copyright the Copyright Office’s Copyright centralize and streamline the eligibility
Acquisitions Division (‘‘CAD’’) prior to Acquisitions Division (‘‘CAD’’) without requirements.4
submitting an application to determine seeking a registration. If a publisher fails In addition, the existing group
if the Library has selected that serial for to comply with the mandatory deposit registration regulations do not
its collections. If the Library has requirement, the Office may issue a accurately reflect the Office’s current
selected the serial, CAD will notify the written demand for those works, and if practices relating to mandatory deposit.
applicant in writing and provide the required copies are not received The existing rule contemplates that
instructions for seeking a group within three months thereafter, the registration examiners will confirm with
registration and for mailing copyright owner or owner of the the Library on an ongoing basis either
complimentary subscription copies to exclusive right of publication in that that group registration applicants are
the Library. If the serial has not been work may be subject to fines or other continuing to provide serial
selected, CAD will notify the applicant monetary liability. See id. 407(d). The subscriptions to the Library, or that they
that it may use the group registration Office has the authority to establish are exempt from that requirement. In
option without providing subscription regulations governing mandatory practice, this does not happen; instead
copies. See Copyright Office, deposit, including regulations to exempt the registration examiners do not
Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office any categories of material from the confirm whether or not subscriptions
Practices sec. 1109.5(A) (3d ed. 2017) deposit requirements. See id. 407(c), have been provided. In addition, the
(hereinafter the ‘‘Compendium’’); 702. group registration regulations by their
Serials published in a physical format terms contemplate the provision of
Circular 62b: Copyright Registration for
a Group of Serial Issues at 2–3 (including works published both in
(hereinafter ‘‘Circular 62b’’); Help: physical and electronic formats) are 4 The proposed rule also corrects an unrelated

subject to these affirmative mandatory error in the preamble to the Best Edition Statement.
Serial Issues (http://www.copyright.gov/ The preamble states that ‘‘[f]or works first
eco/help-serial.html). deposit requirements. By contrast, in published only in a country other than the United
2010, the Office adopted an interim rule States, the law requires the deposit of the best
amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with PROPOSALS

that established a different process for edition as first published.’’ 37 CFR, pt. 202, app. B.
the date of deposit, that the Library of Congress That is inconsistent with section 101 of the
determines to be the most suitable for its purposes.’’ serials published solely in electronic Copyright Act, which defines ‘‘best edition’’ as ‘‘the
37 CFR 202.19(b)(1)(i). form. The interim rule established a edition, published in the United States at any time
3 When the Office published the regulation in the general exemption for most ‘‘[e]lectronic before the date of deposit,’’ and section 408(b)(3),
Federal Register it stated that providing ‘‘two works published in the United States which states that ‘‘in the case of a work first
complimentary subscription copies will satisfy the published outside the United States,’’ the applicant
mandatory deposit requirement of section 407,’’
and available only online,’’ except for should submit ‘‘one complete copy or phonorecord
although this was not mentioned in the regulation serials published solely in electronic as so published.’’ 17 U.S.C. 101, 408(b)(3)
itself. See 55 FR 50556. formats (i.e., ‘‘electronic-only’’ serials). (emphasis added).

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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 96 / Thursday, May 17, 2018 / Proposed Rules 22899

updated practices for examining and publisher has obtained ownership of the contains sufficient compilation
registering online works. See, e.g., copyright’’). By contrast, if an issue authorship to warrant registration. And
Comments of Newspaper Association of contains contributions that are not fully the examiner will review the serial issue
America (urging the Office to create a owned by the copyright claimant, and/ to determine whether it contains ‘‘a
group registration option for newspaper or contributions that were previously number of contributions’’ constituting
websites), available at http:// published, the registration will not ‘‘separate and independent works in
www.copyright.gov/rulemaking/online- extend to those works. See Morris v. themselves.’’ 17 U.S.C. 101 (definition
only/comments/naa.pdf; Comments of Business Concepts, Inc., 259 F.3d 65, 71 of ‘‘collective work’’). When the Office
the National Writers Union, Western (2d Cir. 2001) (‘‘Unless the copyright issues a group registration, the
Writers of America, and American owner of a collective work also owns all certificate will identify the title, author,
Society of Journalists and Authors the rights in a constituent part, a and claimant for each serial issue in the
(urging the Office to create a group collective work registration will not group, but it will not identify the titles,
registration option for multiple works extend to the constituent part.’’), authors, or claimants for the individual
published online on different dates), abrogated on other grounds by Reed contributions appearing within those
available at https:// Elsevier, Inc. v. Muchnick, 559 U.S. 154, issues.
www.regulations.gov/contentStreamer? 160 (2010). The scope of protection for a group
documentId=COLC-2016-0005-0009& With respect to the information registration issued under the proposed
attachmentNumber=1& collected as part of a group registration rule will have two consequences in
disposition=attachment&content and examination practices, the Office infringement actions. First, a group
Type=pdf; see also 81 FR 86634, 86636– must balance the public interest in registration may be used to satisfy the
37 (Dec. 1, 2016); 81 FR 86643, 86646 creating a meaningful record (i.e., statutory requirements for instituting an
(Dec. 1, 2016). The Office is considering collecting information regarding each infringement action involving any of the
these issues and will take them into individual contribution within a serial serial issues that were included within
account when developing its priorities issue) with the relative burden on the group, or any of the individual
for future upgrades to the electronic applicants wishing to participate in the contributions appearing within those
registration system. registration system. When an applicant issues—provided that the claimant fully
submits up to three months of serial owned those contributions at the time
B. Scope of Protection issues for registration, it is difficult to the application for registration is
The proposed rule clarifies that a collect granular information concerning submitted, and provided that the
registration for a group of serials covers the individual articles, photographs, contributions were first published in
each issue in the group, and each issue and other component works within each one of those issues.14 17 U.S.C. 411(a).
will be registered as a separate issue. Requiring applicants to identify Second, the proposed rule also
collective work. In other words, the the author and title of each individual clarifies that the group as a whole is not
group registration is treated as the legal contribution would impose a significant considered a compilation, a collective
equivalent of a separate collective work burden both on applicants and the work, or a derivative work. Instead, the
registration for each serial issue. Office alike. This would discourage group is merely an administrative
As a general rule, a registration for a registration, which in turn, would classification created solely for the
collective work covers the individual diminish the value of the Office’s public purpose of registering multiple
contributions contained within that record. Imposing these burdens would collective works with one application
work if they are fully owned by the also be contrary to the Congressional and one filing fee. The chronological
copyright claimant and if they were first purpose of providing the Office with the selection, coordination, and
published in that work.13 Because a authority to create group registration arrangement of the issues within the
options: To ease the registration of group is entirely dictated by the
registration for a group of serial issues
certain works. regulatory requirements for this option.
effectively is treated as a separate
Accordingly, the Office’s current Likewise, when a group of serial issues
collective work registration for each
application form for a group of serial are combined for the purpose of
issue in the group, a group registration
issues does not allow for the applicant facilitating registration, those works are
also covers the articles, photographs,
to expressly assert a claim in the not ‘‘recast, transformed, or adapted’’ in
illustrations, or other contributions
individual contributions appearing any way, and the group as a whole is
appearing within each issue—if they are
within each issue, provide titles, not ‘‘a work based upon one or more
fully owned by the copyright claimant
authors, or other identifying information preexisting works’’ because there is no
at the time the application was filed and for each contribution, or identify copyrightable authorship in simply
if they were first published in those component works created by a third collecting a month of issues and
issues. See 55 FR at 50557 (stating that party and transferred to the claimant by arranging them in chronological order.
publishers may ‘‘register claims in written agreement. But the Office 17 U.S.C. 101 (definition of ‘‘derivative
individual contributions published for foresees the future possibility of work’’).
the first time in the serial, if the applicants submitting metadata for the
C. Online Registration Requirement
13 See,
component works appearing within
e.g., Alaska Stock, LLC v. Houghton Mifflin The current regulation states that
Harcourt Pub. Co., 747 F.3d 673, 683 (9th Cir. each issue, and the possibility of the
2014); Morris v. Bus. Concepts, Inc., 259 F.3d 65, Office incorporating this information applicants may register their works with
68 (2d Cir. 2001); Compendium secs. 509.1, 509.2; into the registration record. If this the online application designated for
amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with PROPOSALS

see also 17 U.S.C. 201(c) (‘‘Copyright in each becomes feasible once the Office groups of serial issues, or in the
separate contribution to a collective work is distinct alternative, they may submit a paper
from copyright in the collective work as a whole, implements its next-generation
and vests initially in the author of the contribution. registration system, it may require this application using Form SE/Group. 37
In the absence of an express transfer of the type of information as a condition for
copyright or of any rights under it, the owner of using this group registration option.
14 Alternatively, a plaintiff may satisfy this

copyright in the collective work is presumed to statutory requirement if the Office refused
have acquired only the privilege of reproducing and
When the examiner reviews each registration, provided that the plaintiff serves a
distributing the contribution as part of that serial issue, he or she will examine the copy of the complaint on the Register of Copyrights.
particular collective work . . . .’’). issue as a whole to determine if it 17 U.S.C. 411(a).

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Document Created: 2018-05-17 00:50:36
Document Modified: 2018-05-17 00:50:36

Category		Regulatory Information
Collection		Federal Register
sudoc Class		AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106:
Publisher		Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
Section		Proposed Rules
Action		Notice of proposed rulemaking.
Dates		Comments must be made in writing and must be received in the U.S. Copyright Office no later than June 18, 2018.
Contact		Robert J. Kasunic, Associate Register of Copyrights and Director of Registration Policy and Practice, or Erik Bertin, Deputy Director of Registration Policy and Practice, by telephone at 202-707-8040, or by email at [email protected] and [email protected]; or Cindy Paige Abramson, Assistant General Counsel, by telephone at 202-707-0676, or by email at [email protected]
FR Citation		83 FR 22896
CFR Citation		37 CFR 201 37 CFR 202
CFR Associated		Copyright; General Provisions and Preregistration and Registration of Claims to Copyright

83 FR 22896 - Group Registration of Serials

LIBRARY OF CONGRESSCopyright Office

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 96 (May 17, 2018)

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Copyright Office