U.S. Computer Software Copyright Registration Procedure

In the United States, computer software copyrights can be registered and filed with the United States Copyright Office. A computer program is a set of statements or instructions that can be used, directly or indirectly, in a computer to produce a certain result. Copyright protection for a computer program extends to all copyrightable expressions contained in the program. Copyright law does not protect features of a computer program, such as the program's algorithm, format, functionality, logic, or system design.

A copyright registration application consists of three basic elements:

• Completed application form containing general information on the submission of the application, including details on the date the registration will take effect after the application is submitted.
• Application fee, non-refundable.
• A copy of a computer software copyright that is being registered and "deposited" with the Copyright Office.

Generally, an applicant must file a separate application, along with the application fee and a copy of it, for each work they wish to register. However, certain types of work may allow registration of multiple works in a single application.

The U.S. Copyright Office's electronic registration system online application process includes:
- HTML
- Trade Confidential
- Derivative computer programs
- CD
- Computer screen display
- User manual
- Video Games
- Computer program code
- Copyright registration
- Computer Programs

Each version of a computer program that contains new, copyrightable authorship will be considered a separate work. Applicants must file a separate application, filing fee, and copy for each version they wish to register. Applicants may register multiple versions of the same program by filing a group if the versions have never been published.

Each new version of a computer program must include new material contributed by the author to that version, including any corrections, revisions, additions, or other modifications made by the author to that version. The filing may not include earlier versions of the same program or pre-existing material that may have been included in the source code, such as:

- Previously released source code
- Previously filed source code
- Public domain source code
- Source code owned by a third party

But if
(1) the previously existing source code has never been published or registered, and,
(2) If the right holder owns the copyright in both the new source code and the pre-existing source code, the registration may cover both the new source code and the pre-existing source code.

When filing, authors should ensure that the following issues are addressed:

• If the source code contains both new and pre-existing material, you may complete the "Limitation of Claim" and confirm the claim in your application.
• If the copy contains multiple version numbers or dates in the copyright notice (e.g., ©2014, 2015, 2016), the version numbers and dates should be indicated in the description, whether they are the development history of the computer program or refer to a previously unpublished or registered version of the program. If no description is provided, the examiner may question it and delay the registration of the record.

Deposit Requirements

• Submit the source code for the specific version of the computer program to be registered. Source code is a set of statements and instructions written in a programming language (such as C++, PERL, Java). Source code is understandable to someone familiar with the programming language, but it needs to be converted into object code before it can be understood by someone familiar with a computer or other electronic device.
• The source code must be uploaded to the electronic registration system as a PDF file or other file type acceptable to the Copyright Office, or it can be printed and mailed to the U.S. Copyright Office. In either format, the title of the computer program and the version number must be added to the first page of the code.

Note: For programs written in JavaScript or other scripting languages, scripts are considered equivalent to source code. Therefore, submit the same number of pages from scripts as you would submit source code. Copies of on-screen text, buttons, or commands do not qualify for this requirement.

Applicants may submit all source code for an entire computer software program or only representative portions. The specific materials required may vary depending on the following factors:

If the source code contains trade confidential material:

• If the computer program is a derivative computer program
• If the program is fixed on a CD-ROM
• For example, different parties own different copyrights in source code and screen displays generated from the source code.
• If you need to file a user manual or other documentation for a computer program; or
• To register a computer program for a video game

For computer software copyright code without trade secret materials

• If the source code does not contain trade secrets, you must submit copies of the first 25 pages and the last 25 pages of the source code of the computer software copyright version you want to register.
• If the source code does not have a precise beginning, middle, or end, you must submit 50 pages of code that reasonably represents the first and last parts of the code.
• If the entire program is only 50 pages or less, you must submit the entire source code and indicate that the version submitted is the complete source code.
• For either option, you will need to submit a copy of the copyright notice and page containing the version you wish to register.

For computer software copyright codes with trade secrets

If the source code contains a trade secret, you must indicate in writing to the U.S. Copyright Office that the code contains a trade secret. Submit the portion of the code for which you want to register a version using one of the following options:

• 1 copy of the first 10 pages and the last 10 pages, without obstructing any code;
• 1 copy of the first 25 pages and the last 25 pages, with the portions of the code containing trade secret material blocked out, provided that the blocked portions are less than 50% of all the code;
• 1 copy of the first 25 pages and the last 25 pages, and 10 or more consecutive pages of source code, without obstructing any source code;
• If the source code of the entire program is less than 50 pages, you must provide a copy of all the code, and you may block out the code that contains trade secrets, provided that the blocked portion is less than 50% of the deposit; or
• If the source code does not have a precise beginning, middle, or end, you must submit pages 20 to 50 that reasonably represent the first and last parts of the code.
• Regardless of which option you choose, you will need to submit a copy of the copyright notice and page containing the version you wish to register.

The U.S. Copyright Office strictly enforces these rules for the submission of source code that contains trade secret material. The U.S. Copyright Office will refuse to accept copies that do not meet redaction standards. Specifically, the obscured portion of the source code must be proportionally smaller than the unobstructed portion, and the unobstructed portion must contain a substantial amount of copyrightable expression.

Derivative Computer Software Copyright

An applicant may file a derivative computer program as long as the code it contains is original and sufficiently different from pre-existing code to qualify as an original work. This requirement is not met by minor changes or revisions to pre-existing code or by changes or revisions made to the code based solely on the functionality of the hardware. A registration for a derivative computer software copyrighted program covers new or modified material that the author has contributed to the work. It does not include any code that was previously published, previously registered, or that may be in the public domain, or any code that is owned in whole or in part by a third party.

If you want to register a derivative computer software copyright program, you need to submit the source code in the following way:

• If the new or revised code appears in the entire program code, the first 25 pages and the last 25 pages of the entire source code program must be submitted;
• If the new or revised material does not appear in the first 25 pages or the last 25 pages of source code, then submit any 50 pages of source code that contain the new or revised material;
• If the source code contains trade secrets, you may submit part of the program code in accordance with the rules for source code containing trade secrets.
• Regardless of which option you choose, you will need to submit a copy of the copyright notice and page containing the version you wish to register.

CD-ROM Computer Programs

If the computer software copyright program code is fixed on a CD-ROM, a complete copy of the entire CD-ROM must be submitted, including any instructional materials for the program. Source code submission follows the above format.

Computer screen showing program code

A computer software copyright program and the screen displays generated by it are generally considered to be the same software. If the copyright of the program code and the screen displays belongs to the same copyright owner, then the program and any related screen displays can be registered in the same program. However, if different copyright owners own the copyright of the program code, the screen displays need to be registered as separate application programs.

To register both program code and screen displays owned by the same copyright owner, you need to check the box marked "Computer Program" when filling out "Created by Author". You do not need to make a separate statement in the screen displays. The filing of a computer software copyright code program covers the copyright expressions in the program code and any screen displays generated by it, even if the application does not specifically mention the screen displays and no copies of the screen displays are submitted. If you specifically request screen displays in your application, you must submit representative sample code of those screen displays.

User Manual

Copyright holders may also record user manuals, instruction manuals, flow charts, and other development and operating documents. If the same copyright holder owns both the program and the documentation, only one copyright may be recorded. If it has been previously published, the code must be bundled together and released to the public as a whole for the first time. If the program and documentation are released separately or have different copyright holders, each version must be recorded as a separate work.

If you are filing a user manual or other document instead of registering a computer program, if the document has been published, you must submit 2 complete copies of the user manual. If it has not been published, you only need to submit 1 complete copy (PDF file or paper mail)

HTML format (Hypertext Markup Language)

HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language, is a standard markup language used for website design. The Copyright Office believes that HTML does not constitute source code because HTML is not recorded as a computer program. Source code is usually written by humans using computer programming languages (such as Java, C, or C++), while HTML is usually automatically generated by website design software. If the HTML is written by humans rather than created by a website design program and contains a sufficient amount of creative expression, then HTML can be recorded as a computer software copyright. To record an HTML program, a complete copy of the computer program code must be submitted.

Video Games

Video games usually consist of two main elements: the audiovisual material that appears on the screen, and the computer program that runs the game. If the copyright in the computer program code and the audiovisual material belongs to the same copyright owner, the audiovisual material and the program that runs the video game can be registered as one computer program code. If it has been published, it must be filed as a whole. If the program code and the audiovisual material are published separately or have different copyright owners, each element must be filed as a separate program.

If the video game is fixed on a CD-ROM, you must mail a complete CD-ROM including all operating manuals. If the video game is not fixed on a CD-ROM, you must submit a representative part of the audio-visual elements of the video game, such as a photo, and a short written description of the game.

Application with copy of object code

The U.S. Copyright Office strongly recommends that you submit a copy of the source code along with your copyright application. You may submit a copy of the object code of a computer program, but eligibility for copyright will be subject to the U.S. Copyright Office's rule of suspicion.

If you submit a copy of the object code, the copyright owner must include a written statement that the object code contains copyrightable authorship and must be registered under the rule of doubt. If the object code contains the program's copyright notice, the code portion of that notice must be submitted. The notice should be underlined or highlighted in words and numbers that the examiner can understand.

The U.S. Copyright Office will examine the object code to determine whether it satisfies formal and legal requirements. However, the U.S. Copyright Office will not make any determination regarding the copyright eligibility of the object code. Instead, the U.S. Copyright Office will accept the applicant's claim that the object code contains copyrightable authorship and will file a record against the program under the rule of doubt.

Special Requests Regarding Copies

The U.S. Copyright Office grants certain code registrations as a remedy in appropriate circumstances. If the source code for a version of a computer program is no longer available, that version can still be registered if a large portion of the code appears in an earlier or later version of the same program.

All requests for extraordinary relief must be made in writing. The copyright owner must state the specific reasons why the source code for the version to be registered cannot be submitted, and must state the percentage of the code that appears in earlier or later versions of the same program. In addition, the copyright owner must submit portions of the code from the other versions, and the copies contain at least a portion of the version to be registered.