Opinion ID: 852355
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Copyright Transfer

Text: The Copyright Act recognizes a broad variety of forms by which ownership of copyright interests may be transferred: an assignment, mortgage, exclusive license, or any other conveyance, alienation, or hypothecation of a copyright or of any of the exclusive rights comprised in a copyright, whether or not it is limited in time or place of effect, but not including a nonexclusive license. 17 U.S.C. § 101. Transfer of ownership requires a writing signed by the copyright owner or his agent which memorializes the rights conveyed. See 17 U.S.C. 204(a). Although the writing may lack terms such as transfer and copyright, evidence that the parties intended to transfer the copyright interest may be sufficient evidence that the parties intended to transfer the interest. 3-10 M. Nimmer & D. Nimmer, Nimmer on Copyright § 10.03 (1989). One court described the level of detail required in this way: it doesn't have to be the Magna Carta; a one-line pro forma statement will do. Effects Assocs., Inc. v. Cohen, 908 F.2d 555, 557 (9th Cir.1990), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 1103, 111 S.Ct. 1003, 112 L.Ed.2d 1086 (1991). Although the federal circuits do not yet agree on the nuances, they do agree that some subsequent writings are sufficient to fulfill the requirement. See Konigsberg Int'l Inc. v. Rice, 16 F.3d 355 (9th Cir.1994); Billy-Bob Teeth, Inc. v. Novelty, Inc., 329 F.3d 586 (7th Cir.2003); Imperial Residential Design, Inc. v. Palms Dev. Group, Inc., 70 F.3d 96 (11th Cir.1995) (signing may occur after complaint filed); Arthur Rutenberg Homes, Inc. v. Drew Homes, Inc., 29 F.3d 1529 (11th Cir.1994) (writing may occur after registration). A signed contract making no reference to ownership and lacking essential terms is inadequate as a memorandum of transfer. Pamfiloff v. Giant Records, Inc., 794 F.Supp. 933 (N.D.Cal.1992). The language in Gray Loon's proposal indicating that it is Gray Loon's philosophy that clients have purchased goods and services from us and that inherently means ownership of those goods and services... does not carry the weight and certainty required by the Copyright Act. Furthermore, the formalities of copyright ownership transfer were clearly not met, inasmuch as the proposalthe only document purporting to grant POA any ownership interest in Gray Loon's intellectual propertywas not signed as required by § 204. The level of formality in vendor-client relationships varies according to the size and sophistication of the parties and the size and duration of their project. While large technology firms and substantial customers commonly employ contracts that allocate ownership and responsibilities, we perceive that the absence of such agreements in this case is not a radical departure from the practices that prevail in small firms and small projects. There having been no agreement that effectively produced a transfer to POA, however, we conclude that the website remained the property of Gray Loon.