U.S. Copyright Law Overview
United States copyright law does not require that the creator of a work register the work with the U.S. Copyright Office. U.S. law provides that when a work is created, the work is protected automatically by U.S. copyright law without the need to register the work or display a copyright notice. Copyright protection attaches to a work when it is fixed in a copy or phonorecord for the first time, whether or not the author uses the "©" symbol or the copyright notice.
If somebody infringes on your web site copyright, you may sue for copyright infringement. Copyright registration is a prerequisite for filing an infringement claim in federal court with respect to works that originate in the United States. If you want to sue an infringer and you have not registered your web site, it will take four months or more after receiving your registration application before the U.S. Copyright Office issues a Certificate of Registration.
It costs $30 to register with http://www.copyright.gov/ but the protection is worth the money. A website represents money spent on an intellectual part of the company, it would be wise to protect that investment as any other asset the company has.
You can post only original text created by you on your website. Copy/paste is an infringement of copyright laws. Altering or rewording a third party text is also not allowed. If you are using any third party text, make sure you have the permission of the original author and follow the agreement to the letter.
One of the most common infringements on the Internet occurs with images. The best and only way is to create your own images -- drawing, photo or painting. The exceptions to this rule include licensed images (e.g. Microsoft/Apple logo) by accepting the terms of the license, image libraries provided with a software and free images provided by websites. In all cases, it is necessary to read and understand the terms under which these images can be used.
Copyright laws apply all websites even if they are personal websites. The safest way to avoid any complications is to get explicit permission in written form from the copyright owner. It is always a good idea to place a copyright notice on your website though it is not a legal requirement.
Adherence
The K&A PC Service website adheres to copyright policy by not duplicating other pictures, music, video, or any other media from other sites including text unless we have written authorization from the owners. All logos and images are made by our company. In designing our code we have created it directly and not copied any other websites. We invite all others to do the same and protect thier own investments.
