Copyright Registration or Poor Man’s Copyright?Many authors, photographers, novelists, and different artistic professionals swear by the “poor man’s copyright” methodology: mailing copies of their very own works to themselves and leaving the envelope sealed, thus “proving” authorized possession over the enclosed materials.However does this actually show something… or is the try merely a waste of cash?Copyright Safety is AutomaticWhen you create a music, a poem, a music video, a portray, or another piece of copyrightable work, safety is automated. You created it; you personal it.However there is a relatively conspicuous distinction between proudly owning sure rights and defending these rights in court docket.Copyright Registration is the Solely Authorized Proof Accepted In CourtAccording to the US Copyright Workplace’s “Copyright Basics” publication, there are particular benefits to registering formally (although safety doesn’t rely upon it), arguably an important being that in case of copyright infringement, registrations for works that originated in the USA are required in an effort to convey a lawsuit.Sure, you learn that proper: With no copyright registration, you can not sue somebody for copyright infringement.One other wonderful cause to register sooner relatively than later includes the potential fee of authorized charges, within the occasion of a profitable final result in court docket; if the official registration doesn’t happen earlier than the infringement or inside three months of publication, solely precise damages will be rewarded (no statutory damages or authorized charges).All of the sudden, the $35 registration price proponents of the poor-man’s copyright attempt to keep away from would not appear to massive and looming anymore.Poor Man’s Copyright Not Supported by LawOne final nail within the coffin comes by means of the identical publication:”The practice of sending a copy of your own work to yourself is sometimes called a ‘poor man’s copyright.’ There is no provision in the copyright law regarding any such type of protection, and it is not a substitute for registration.”It is clear that deciding to save cash by selecting the poor-man’s copyright is a myopic view of actuality, and that any rational look towards future funds helps a call to formally register a copyright.