It’s a new year: time to update your copyright notice. An updated copyright notice on your website shows you are paying attention. It also shows you are protecting your content as you evolve.
Always use “©20XX [CLIENT NAME]. All Rights Reserved.” on your important copyrighted content, including your website and terms of use, as well as code and other proprietary content.
If the evolution of the work spans several years, you may use a range: “©20XX-20XX [CLIENT NAME]. All Rights Reserved.”
No registration or payment of any fee is required for use of a copyright notice. Registration does offer some significant benefits, with which you should become familiar. But it is not required in order for you to mark your proprietary works of authorship with the appropriate notice.
The notice is not required in order to have protection. However, the notice does deter erstwhile infringers, and it puts others on notice that you claim protection in a particular work. Once a party is on notice of your claim, they can be liable for wilful infringement and treble damages.
Copyright in the US and most of the world is automatic upon fixation of an original work of authorship in a tangible medium of expression. In plain English: you get copyright protection automatically when you put your original works on paper or in digital medium.
Please let us know if you would like additional information about how to protect your copyrights and other valuable intellectual property.
