34 United States Copyright Office

NAMES, TITLES, AND SHORT PHRASES NOT

PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT

Names, titles, and short phrases or expressions are not subject to copyright protection. Even if a name, title, or short phrase

is novel or distinctive or if it lends itself to a play on words, it

cannot be protected by copyright. The Copyright Office cannot

register claims to exclusive rights in brief combinations of words

such as:

● Names of products or services

● Names of businesses, organizations, or groups (including

the name of a group of performers)

● Names of pseudonyms of individuals (including pen name

or stage name)

● Titles of works

● Catchwords, catchphrases, mottoes, slogans, or short

advertising expressions

● Mere listings of ingredients, as in recipes, labels, or

formulas. When a recipe or formula is accompanied by

explanation or directions, the text directions may be copyrightable, but the recipe or formula itself remains

uncopyrightable.

SUBJECT MATTER OF COPYRIGHT

Copyright protection under the copyright code (title 17,

section 102, U.S. Code) extends only to “original works of

authorship.” The statute states clearly that ideas and concepts

cannot be protected by copyright. To be protected by copyright,

a work must contain at least a certain minimum amount of authorship in the form of original literary, musical, pictorial, or

graphic expression. Names, titles, and other short phrases do

not meet these requirements.

CircularCopyright

Protection

Not

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for Names,

Titles,

or Short

Phrases

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COPYRIGHT OFFICE RECORDS LISTED

ALPHABETICALLY BY TITLE

The titles of registered works are filed alphabetically and

appear in that order in the indexes and catalogs of the Copyright Office.

However, the presence of a title in the Copyright Office registration records does not mean that the title itself is copyrighted

or subject to copyright protection. In many cases, our records

show the same or closely similar titles for entirely different

works.

Copyright Office files may be examined through LOCIS (Library of Congress Information System). Access to LOCIS

requires Telnet support. If your online service provider supports Telnet, you can connect to LOCIS through the Copyright

Office Website or directly by using Telnet.

www.loc.gov/copyright

Telnet: locis.loc.gov

If your online service provider does not support Telnet,

address your concerns directly to the provider.

PROTECTION UNDER TRADEMARK OR

UNFAIR COMPETITION LAWS

Some brand names, trade names, slogans, and phrases

may be entitled to protection under the general rules of law

relating to unfair competition, or they may be entitled to protection and registration under the provisions of state or federal trademark laws. The federal trademark statute covers

trademarks and service marks—those words, phrases, symbols, or designs that identify the source of the goods or services of one party and distinguish them from those of others.

The Copyright Office has no role in these matters.

For questions on trademarks or for information on registering a federal trademark, write to:

Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks

Washington, D.C. 20231

Or call the Patent and Trademark help line at (800) PTO9199 or (703) 308-HELP (TTY: (703) 305-7785). For the

Trademark Assistance Center, call (703) 308-9000. Internet

information is available at www.uspto.gov

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

To request Copyright Office circulars and application

forms, write to:

Library of Congress

Copyright Office

Publications Section, LM-455

101 Independence Avenue, S.E.

Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

Or, if you know which forms and circulars you want, request them 24 hours a day from the Forms and Publications

Hotline at (202) 707-9100. Leave a recorded message.

Selected circulars and other information (but not application forms) are available from Fax-on-Demand at (202) 707-

2600.

Circulars, announcements, recent regulations, and copyright registration forms are available via the Copyright Office

Website at www.loc.gov/copyright.

For general information about copyright, call the Copyright

Public Information Office at (202) 707-3000. The TTY number is (202) 707-6737. Information specialists are on duty

from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. eastern time, Monday through

Friday, except federal holidays. Recorded information is available 24 hours a day.

Library of Congress • Copyright Office • 101 Independence Avenue, S.E. • Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

www.loc.gov/copyright

February 2000—30,000 ✩U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 2000-461-113/105 WEB REV: June 1999

UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT OFFICE

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS