Copyright claims registration: Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA); restored copyright, notices of intent to enforce; mailing address change,

[Federal Register: March 16, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 50)]

[Rules and Regulations]

[Page 12902]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr16mr99-9]

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Copyright Office

37 CFR Parts 201 and 202

Change of Mailing Address for Notices of Intent to Enforce a Restored Copyright

AGENCY: Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Technical amendment.

SUMMARY: On January 20, 1999, the Copyright Office notified the public that it was changing the mailing address for submitting a Notice of Intent to Enforce (NIE) a restored copyright or registering claims in restored works under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, effective February 22, 1999. The number of these filings has greatly decreased making it unnecessary for the Office to maintain a special post office box. In the future all NIEs must be mailed to the special GC/I&R address given below for mail, and all future registration claims should be mailed to the same address given for other registration claims.

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 22, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marilyn J. Kretsinger, Assistant General Counsel, or Sandra Jones, Writer-Editor, Copyright GC/I&R, P.O. Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, D.C. 20024. Telephone: (202) 707-8380. Telefax: (202) 707-8366.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Uruguay Round General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA) provide for the restoration of copyright in certain works that were in the public domain in the United States. Under 17 U.S.C. 104A (1994) as provided by the URAA, copyright protection automatically was restored on January 1, 1996, in certain works by foreign nationals or domiciliaries of a country that is the subject of a presidential proclamation declaring its eligibility or that is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) or of the Berne Convention.

Copyright owners of works meeting the requirements of section 104A may register a copyright claim in a restored work and file a Notice of Intent to Enforce (NIE) a restored copyright in the Copyright Office or serve an NIE on an individual reliance party, anyone who is already using the work or acquired copies of the work before the date of enactment of the URAA. The URAA instructs the Register of Copyrights to publish lists in the Federal Register identifying the restored works and their owners if a notice of intent to enforce a restored copyright has been filed.

During the first two years that the lists were published, a special mailing address was established for the submission of NIEs and applications to register copyright claims under the URAA because of the large number of expected filings and the special handling that they required. The initial two-year period for filing NIE's with the Office ended for the overwhelming majority of countries on December 31, 1997. The number of filings has decreased drastically, therefore, the special address is no longer needed.

On January 22, 1999, the Office issued a notice informing all interested parties of the change in the mailing address for filing NIEs or URAA/GATT registrations. The former address was: URAA/GATT, NIEs and Registrations, P.O. Box 72400, Southwest Station, Washington, DC 20024, USA. The new address for filing NIE's is GC/I&R, P.O. Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, D.C. 20024, USA. The revised address for GATT registrations is Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress, Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue, S.E., Washington, D.C. 20559-6000. (64 FR 3574, Jan. 22, 1999). The Office is now amending its regulations to reflect the change of addresses.

List of Subjects

37 CFR Part 201

Copyright.

37 CFR Part 202

Copyright.

Final Rules

For the reasons set out in the preamble, amend parts 201 and 202 of Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 201--GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The authority citation for part 201 continues to read as follows:

   Authority: 17 U.S.C. 702.

2. Amend Sec. 201.33 by revising paragraph (d)(1) to read as follows:

   Sec. 201.33 Procedures for filing Notices of Intent to Enforce a restored copyright under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.

   * * * * *

   (d * * *

   (1) Notices of Intent to Enforce should be sent to the following address: GC/I&R, P.O. Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, D.C. 20024, USA. * * * * *

   PART 202--REGISTRATION OF CLAIMS TO COPYRIGHT

3. The authority citation for part 202 continues to read as follows:

   Authority: 17 U.S.C. 702.

   Sec. 202.12 [Amended]

4. Amend Sec. 202.12 by revising the last sentence of paragraph (c)(1) to read ``The application, filing fee, and deposit should be sent in a single package to the following address: Library of Congress, Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue S.E., Washington, D.C. 20559- 6000.'' Marilyn Kretsinger, Assistant General Counsel, Copyright Office.

   [FR Doc. 99-6355Filed3-15-99; 8:45 am]

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