Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Wisconsin

Vintage Magazine Contents Copyright

Are the contents of magazines and books subject to copyright protection if the content was published in the 1930s through the 1950s? I'm not talking about the entire magazine, but individual content items such as plans, articles, illustrations, etc. What if the magazine is no longer in print?


Asked on 9/17/07, 7:12 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Johm Smith tom's

Re: Vintage Magazine Contents Copyright

From these facts it sounds like they are probably still protected, but I'd need to know more to be certain.

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Answered on 9/17/07, 9:06 pm
Nancy Delain Delain Law Office, PLLC

Re: Vintage Magazine Contents Copyright

It depends. Copyright in the 1950s was for a renewable 28-year term, but when the 1976 Act came in that changed things. I'd need to know the exact dates of publication, whether copyright was registered, when copyright was set to expire under the old Act, and whether copyright was renewed in the materials to answer your question.

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Answered on 9/17/07, 9:50 pm


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