This is from Matt over at www.tofy.net on a posting in Yahoo.

Here is part of the text I have available on my site, taken directly from
the copyright.gov website, formatting added by me:

How Long Copyright Protection Endures Short Version:

*Works Originally Created on or after January 1, 1978*

A work that was created (fixed in tangible form for the first time) on or
after January 1, 1978, is automatically protected from the moment of its
creation and is ordinarily given a term enduring for the author's life plus
an additional 70 years after the author's death. In the case of "a joint
work prepared by two or more authors who did not work for hire," the term
lasts for 70 years after the last surviving author's death. For works made
for hire, and for anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author's
identity is revealed in Copyright Office records), the duration of copyright
will be 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is
shorter.
Works Originally Created before January 1, 1978, But Not Published or
Registered by That Date

These works have been automatically brought under the statute and are now
given federal copyright protection. The duration of copyright in these works
is generally computed in the same way as for works created on or after
January 1, 1978: the life-plus-70 or 95/120-year terms apply to them as
well. The law provides that in no case would the term of copyright for works
in this category expire before December 31, 2002, and for works published on
or before December 31, 2002, the term of copyright will not expire before
December 31, 2047.
Works Originally Created and Published or Registered before January 1, 1978

Under the law in effect before 1978, copyright was secured either on the
date a work was published with a copyright notice or on the date of
registration if the work was registered in unpublished form. In either case,
the copyright endured for a first term of 28 years from the date it was
secured. During the last (28th) year of the first term, the copyright was
eligible for renewal. The Copyright Act of 1976 extended the renewal term
from 28 to 47 years for copyrights that were subsisting on January 1, 1978,
or for pre-1978 copyrights restored under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act
(URAA), making these works eligible for a total term of protection of 75
years. Public Law 105-298<http://www.copyright.gov/legislation/pl105-298.pdf>,
enacted on October 27, 1998, further extended the renewal term of copyrights
still subsisting on that date by an additional 20 years, providing for a
renewal term of 67 years and a total term of protection of 95 years.

Public Law 102-307, enacted on June 26, 1992, amended the 1976 Copyright Act
to provide for automatic renewal of the term of copyrights secured between
January 1, 1964, and December 31, 1977. Although the renewal term is
automatically provided, the Copyright Office does not issue a renewal
certificate for these works unless a renewal application and fee are
received and registered in the Copyright Office.

Public Law 102-307 makes renewal registration optional. Thus, filing for
renewal registration is no longer required to extend the original 28-year
copyright term to the full 95 years. However, some benefits accrue to
renewal registrations that were made during the 28th year.

For more detailed information on renewal of copyright and the copyright
term, request Circular 15, <http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ15.pdf> *Renewal
of Copyright*; Circular 15a
<http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ15a.html>, *Duration
of Copyright*; and Circular 15t<http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ15t.html>,
*Extension of Copyright Terms.*

Amendment to Title 17 (2003 ver):

- 301. Preemption with respect to other
laws<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#301>
- 302. Duration of copyright: Works created on or after January 1,
1978 <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#302>
- 303. Duration of copyright: Works created but not published or
copyrighted before January 1,
1978<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#303>
- 304. Duration of copyright: Subsisting
copyrights<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#304>
- 305. Duration of copyright: Terminal
date<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#305>

§ 301. Preemption with respect to other
laws2<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-2>

(a) On and after January 1, 1978, all legal or equitable rights that are
equivalent to any of the exclusive rights within the general scope of
copyright as specified by section
106<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106>in works of
authorship that are fixed in a tangible medium of expression and
come within the subject matter of copyright as specified by sections
102<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#102>and
103, <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#103> whether created
before or after that date and whether published or unpublished, are governed
exclusively by this title. Thereafter, no person is entitled to any such
right or equivalent right in any such work under the common law or statutes
of any State.

(b) Nothing in this title annuls or limits any rights or remedies under the
common law or statutes of any State with respect to —

(1) subject matter that does not come within the subject matter of copyright
as specified by sections
102<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#102>and
103, <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#103> including works of
authorship not fixed in any tangible medium of expression; or

(2) any cause of action arising from undertakings commenced before January
1, 1978;

(3) activities violating legal or equitable rights that are not equivalent
to any of the exclusive rights within the general scope of copyright as
specified by section 106;<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106>or

(4) State and local landmarks, historic preservation, zoning, or building
codes, relating to architectural works protected under section
102(a)(8).<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#102>

(c) With respect to sound recordings fixed before February 15, 1972, any
rights or remedies under the common law or statutes of any State shall not
be annulled or limited by this title until February 15, 2067. The preemptive
provisions of subsection (a) shall apply to any such rights and remedies
pertaining to any cause of action arising from undertakings commenced on and
after February 15, 2067. Notwithstanding the provisions of section
303,<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#303>no sound
recording fixed before February 15, 1972, shall be subject to
copyright under this title before, on, or after February 15, 2067.

(d) Nothing in this title annuls or limits any rights or remedies under any
other Federal statute.

(e) The scope of Federal preemption under this section is not affected by
the adherence of the United States to the Berne Convention or the
satisfaction of obligations of the United States thereunder.

(f)(1) On or after the effective date set forth in section 610(a) of the
Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990, all legal or equitable rights that are
equivalent to any of the rights conferred by section
106A<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106a>with respect
to works of visual art to which the rights conferred by section
106A <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106a> apply are governed
exclusively by section
106A<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106a>and section
113(d) <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#113> and the
provisions of this title relating to such sections. Thereafter, no person is
entitled to any such right or equivalent right in any work of visual art
under the common law or statutes of any
State.3<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-3>

(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) annuls or limits any rights or remedies under
the common law or statutes of any State with respect to —

(A) any cause of action from undertakings commenced before the effective
date set forth in section 610(a) of the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990;

(B) activities violating legal or equitable rights that are not equivalent
to any of the rights conferred by section
106A<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#106a>with respect
to works of visual art; or

(C) activities violating legal or equitable rights which extend beyond the
life of the author.
§ 302. Duration of copyright: Works created on or after January 1,
19784<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-4>

(a) In General. — Copyright in a work created on or after January 1, 1978,
subsists from its creation and, except as provided by the following
subsections, endures for a term consisting of the life of the author and 70
years after the author's death.

(b) Joint Works. — In the case of a joint work prepared by two or more
authors who did not work for hire, the copyright endures for a term
consisting of the life of the last surviving author and 70 years after such
last surviving author's death.

(c) Anonymous Works, Pseudonymous Works, and Works Made for Hire. — In the
case of an anonymous work, a pseudonymous work, or a work made for hire, the
copyright endures for a term of 95 years from the year of its first
publication, or a term of 120 years from the year of its creation, whichever
expires first. If, before the end of such term, the identity of one or more
of the authors of an anonymous or pseudonymous work is revealed in the
records of a registration made for that work under subsections (a) or (d) of
section 408, <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap4.html#408> or in the
records provided by this subsection, the copyright in the work endures for
the term specified by subsection (a) or (b), based on the life of the author
or authors whose identity has been revealed. Any person having an interest
in the copyright in an anonymous or pseudonymous work may at any time
record, in records to be maintained by the Copyright Office for that
purpose, a statement identifying one or more authors of the work; the
statement shall also identify the person filing it, the nature of that
person's interest, the source of the information recorded, and the
particular work affected, and shall comply in form and content with
requirements that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.

(d) Records Relating to Death of Authors. — Any person having an interest in
a copyright may at any time record in the Copyright Office a statement of
the date of death of the author of the copyrighted work, or a statement that
the author is still living on a particular date. The statement shall
identify the person filing it, the nature of that person's interest, and the
source of the information recorded, and shall comply in form and content
with requirements that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by
regulation. The Register shall maintain current records of information
relating to the death of authors of copyrighted works, based on such
recorded statements and, to the extent the Register considers practicable,
on data contained in any of the records of the Copyright Office or in other
reference sources.

(e) Presumption as to Author's Death. — After a period of 95 years from the
year of first publication of a work, or a period of 120 years from the year
of its creation, whichever expires first, any person who obtains from the
Copyright Office a certified report that the records provided by subsection
(d) disclose nothing to indicate that the author of the work is living, or
died less than 70 years before, is entitled to the benefit of a presumption
that the author has been dead for at least 70 years. Reliance in good faith
upon this presumption shall be a complete defense to any action for
infringement under this title.
§ 303. Duration of copyright: Works created but not published or copyrighted
before January 1, 19785 <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-5>

(a) Copyright in a work created before January 1, 1978, but not theretofore
in the public domain or copyrighted, subsists from January 1, 1978, and
endures for the term provided by section
302.<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#302>In no case,
however, shall the term of copyright in such a work expire
before December 31, 2002; and, if the work is published on or before
December 31, 2002, the term of copyright shall not expire before December
31, 2047.

(b) The distribution before January 1, 1978, of a phonorecord shall not for
any purpose constitute a publication of the musical work embodied therein.
§ 304. Duration of copyright: Subsisting
copyrights6<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-6>

(a) Copyrights in Their First Term on January 1, 1978. —

(1)(A) Any copyright, in the first term of which is subsisting on January 1,
1978, shall endure for 28 years from the date it was originally secured.

(B) In the case of —

(i) any posthumous work or of any periodical, cyclopedic, or other composite
work upon which the copyright was originally secured by the proprietor
thereof, or

(ii) any work copyrighted by a corporate body (otherwise than as assignee or
licensee of the individual author) or by an employer for whom such work is
made for hire,

the proprietor of such copyright shall be entitled to a renewal and
extension of the copyright in such work for the further term of 67 years.

(C) In the case of any other copyrighted work, including a contribution by
an individual author to a periodical or to a cyclopedic or other composite
work —

(i) the author of such work, if the author is still living,

(ii) the widow, widower, or children of the author, if the author is not
living,

(iii) the author's executors, if such author, widow, widower, or children
are not living, or

(iv) the author's next of kin, in the absence of a will of the author, shall
be entitled to a renewal and extension of the copyright in such work for a
further term of 67 years.

(2)(A) At the expiration of the original term of copyright in a work
specified in paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection, the copyright shall endure
for a renewed and extended further term of 67 years, which —

(i) if an application to register a claim to such further term has been made
to the Copyright Office within 1 year before the expiration of the original
term of copyright, and the claim is registered, shall vest, upon the
beginning of such further term, in the proprietor of the copyright who is
entitled to claim the renewal of copyright at the time the application is
made; or

(ii) if no such application is made or the claim pursuant to such
application is not registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of such
further term, in the person or entity that was the proprietor of the
copyright as of the last day of the original term of copyright.

(B) At the expiration of the original term of copyright in a work specified
in paragraph (1)(C) of this subsection, the copyright shall endure for a
renewed and extended further term of 67 years, which —

(i) if an application to register a claim to such further term has been made
to the Copyright Office within 1 year before the expiration of the original
term of copyright, and the claim is registered, shall vest, upon the
beginning of such further term, in any person who is entitled under
paragraph (1)(C) to the renewal and extension of the copyright at the time
the application is made; or

(ii) if no such application is made or the claim pursuant to such
application is not registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of such
further term, in any person entitled under paragraph (1)(C), as of the last
day of the original term of copyright, to the renewal and extension of the
copyright.

(3)(A) An application to register a claim to the renewed and extended term
of copyright in a work may be made to the Copyright Office —

(i) within 1 year before the expiration of the original term of copyright by
any person entitled under paragraph (1)(B) or (C) to such further term of 67
years; and

(ii) at any time during the renewed and extended term by any person in whom
such further term vested, under paragraph (2)(A) or (B), or by any successor
or assign of such person, if the application is made in the name of such
person.

(B) Such an application is not a condition of the renewal and extension of
the copyright in a work for a further term of 67 years.

(4)(A) If an application to register a claim to the renewed and extended
term of copyright in a work is not made within 1 year before the expiration
of the original term of copyright in a work, or if the claim pursuant to
such application is not registered, then a derivative work prepared under
authority of a grant of a transfer or license of the copyright that is made
before the expiration of the original term of copyright may continue to be
used under the terms of the grant during the renewed and extended term of
copyright without infringing the copyright, except that such use does not
extend to the preparation during such renewed and extended term of other
derivative works based upon the copyrighted work covered by such grant.

(B) If an application to register a claim to the renewed and extended term
of copyright in a work is made within 1 year before its expiration, and the
claim is registered, the certificate of such registration shall constitute
prima facie evidence as to the validity of the copyright during its renewed
and extended term and of the facts stated in the certificate. The
evidentiary weight to be accorded the certificates of a registration of a
renewed and extended term of copyright made after the end of that 1-year
period shall be within the discretion of the court.

(b) Copyrights in Their Renewal Term at the Time of the Effective Date of
the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension
Act.7<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-7>— Any
copyright still in its renewal term at the time that the Sonny Bono
Copyright Term Extension Act becomes effective shall have a copyright term
of 95 years from the date copyright was originally
secured.8<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-8>

(c) Termination of Transfers and Licenses Covering Extended Renewal Term. —
In the case of any copyright subsisting in either its first or renewal term
on January 1, 1978, other than a copyright in a work made for hire, the
exclusive or nonexclusive grant of a transfer or license of the renewal
copyright or any right under it, executed before January 1, 1978, by any of
the persons designated by subsection (a)(1)(C) of this section, otherwise
than by will, is subject to termination under the following conditions:

(1) In the case of a grant executed by a person or persons other than the
author, termination of the grant may be effected by the surviving person or
persons who executed it. In the case of a grant executed by one or more of
the authors of the work, termination of the grant may be effected, to the
extent of a particular author's share in the ownership of the renewal
copyright, by the author who executed it or, if such author is dead, by the
person or persons who, under clause (2) of this subsection, own and are
entitled to exercise a total of more than one-half of that author's
termination interest.

(2) Where an author is dead, his or her termination interest is owned, and
may be exercised, as follows:

(A) The widow or widower owns the author's entire termination interest
unless there are any surviving children or grandchildren of the author, in
which case the widow or widower owns one-half of the author's interest.

(B) The author's surviving children, and the surviving children of any dead
child of the author, own the author's entire termination interest unless
there is a widow or widower, in which case the ownership of one-half of the
author's interest is divided among them.

(C) The rights of the author's children and grandchildren are in all cases
divided among them and exercised on a per stirpes basis according to the
number of such author's children represented; the share of the children of a
dead child in a termination interest can be exercised only by the action of
a majority of them.

(D) In the event that the author's widow or widower, children, and
grandchildren are not living, the author's executor, administrator, personal
representative, or trustee shall own the author's entire termination
interest.

(3) Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of
five years beginning at the end of fifty-six years from the date copyright
was originally secured, or beginning on January 1, 1978, whichever is later.

(4) The termination shall be effected by serving an advance notice in
writing upon the grantee or the grantee's successor in title. In the case of
a grant executed by a person or persons other than the author, the notice
shall be signed by all of those entitled to terminate the grant under clause
(1) of this subsection, or by their duly authorized agents. In the case of a
grant executed by one or more of the authors of the work, the notice as to
any one author's share shall be signed by that author or his or her duly
authorized agent or, if that author is dead, by the number and proportion of
the owners of his or her termination interest required under clauses (1) and
(2) of this subsection, or by their duly authorized agents.

(A) The notice shall state the effective date of the termination, which
shall fall within the five-year period specified by clause (3) of this
subsection, or, in the case of a termination under subsection (d), within
the five-year period specified by subsection (d)(2), and the notice shall be
served not less than two or more than ten years before that date. A copy of
the notice shall be recorded in the Copyright Office before the effective
date of termination, as a condition to its taking effect.

(B) The notice shall comply, in form, content, and manner of service, with
requirements that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.

(5) Termination of the grant may be effected notwithstanding any agreement
to the contrary, including an agreement to make a will or to make any future
grant.

(6) In the case of a grant executed by a person or persons other than the
author, all rights under this title that were covered by the terminated
grant revert, upon the effective date of termination, to all of those
entitled to terminate the grant under clause (1) of this subsection. In the
case of a grant executed by one or more of the authors of the work, all of a
particular author's rights under this title that were covered by the
terminated grant revert, upon the effective date of termination, to that
author or, if that author is dead, to the persons owning his or her
termination interest under clause (2) of this subsection, including those
owners who did not join in signing the notice of termination under clause
(4) of this subsection. In all cases the reversion of rights is subject to
the following limitations:

(A) A derivative work prepared under authority of the grant before its
termination may continue to be utilized under the terms of the grant after
its termination, but this privilege does not extend to the preparation after
the termination of other derivative works based upon the copyrighted work
covered by the terminated grant.

(B) The future rights that will revert upon termination of the grant become
vested on the date the notice of termination has been served as provided by
clause (4) of this subsection.

(C) Where the author's rights revert to two or more persons under clause (2)
of this subsection, they shall vest in those persons in the proportionate
shares provided by that clause. In such a case, and subject to the
provisions of subclause (D) of this clause, a further grant, or agreement to
make a further grant, of a particular author's share with respect to any
right covered by a terminated grant is valid only if it is signed by the
same number and proportion of the owners, in whom the right has vested under
this clause, as are required to terminate the grant under clause (2) of this
subsection. Such further grant or agreement is effective with respect to all
of the persons in whom the right it covers has vested under this subclause,
including those who did not join in signing it. If any person dies after
rights under a terminated grant have vested in him or her, that person's
legal representatives, legatees, or heirs at law represent him or her for
purposes of this subclause.

(D) A further grant, or agreement to make a further grant, of any right
covered by a terminated grant is valid only if it is made after the
effective date of the termination. As an exception, however, an agreement
for such a further grant may be made between the author or any of the
persons provided by the first sentence of clause (6) of this subsection, or
between the persons provided by subclause (C) of this clause, and the
original grantee or such grantee's successor in title, after the notice of
termination has been served as provided by clause (4) of this subsection.

(E) Termination of a grant under this subsection affects only those rights
covered by the grant that arise under this title, and in no way affects
rights arising under any other Federal, State, or foreign laws.

(F) Unless and until termination is effected under this subsection, the
grant, if it does not provide otherwise, continues in effect for the
remainder of the extended renewal term.

(d) Termination Rights Provided in Subsection (c) Which Have Expired on or
before the Effective Date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. —
In the case of any copyright other than a work made for hire, subsisting in
its renewal term on the effective date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act9 <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#3-9> for which
the termination right provided in subsection (c) has expired by such date,
where the author or owner of the termination right has not previously
exercised such termination right, the exclusive or nonexclusive grant of a
transfer or license of the renewal copyright or any right under it, executed
before January 1, 1978, by any of the persons designated in subsection
(a)(1)(C) of this section, other than by will, is subject to termination
under the following conditions:

(1) The conditions specified in subsections (c) (1), (2), (4), (5), and (6)
of this section apply to terminations of the last 20 years of copyright term
as provided by the amendments made by the Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act.

(2) Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of
5 years beginning at the end of 75 years from the date copyright was
originally secured.
§ 305. Duration of copyright: Terminal date

All terms of copyright provided by sections 302 through 304 run to the end
of the calendar year in which they would otherwise expire.
Chapter 3 Endnotes

1Private Law 92-60, 85 Stat. 857, effective December 15, 1971, states that:

[A]ny provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, copyright is hereby
granted to the trustees under the will of Mary Baker Eddy, their successors,
and assigns, in the work "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures"
(entitled also in some editions "Science and Health" or "Science and Health;
with a Key to the Scriptures"), by Mary Baker Eddy, including all editions
thereof in English and translation heretofore published, or hereafter
published by or on behalf of said trustees, their successors or assigns, for
a term of seventy-five years from the effective date of this Act or from the
date of first publication, whichever is later.

But *cf. United Christian Scientists *v*. Christian Science Board of
Directors, First Church of Christ, Scientist,* 829 F.2d 1152, 4 USPQ2d 1177
(D.C. Cir. 1987) (holding Priv. L. 92-60, 85 Stat. 857, to be
unconstitutional because it violates the Establishment Clause).

2 The Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988 amended section
301<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#301>by adding at the
end thereof subsection (e). Pub. L. No. 100-568, 102 Stat.
2853, 2857. In 1990, the Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act
amended section 301(b)
<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#301>by adding at the
end thereof paragraph (4). Pub. L. No. 101-650, 104 Stat.
5133, 5134. The Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 amended section
301<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#301>by adding at the
end thereof subsection (f). Pub. L. No. 101-650, 104 Stat.
5089, 5131. In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act
amended section
301 <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#301> by changing
"February 15, 2047" to "February 15, 2067" each place it appeared in
subsection (c). Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827.

3The Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990, which added subsection (f), states,
"Subject to subsection (b) and except as provided in subsection (c), this
title and the amendments made by this title take effect 6 months after the
date of the enactment of this Act," that is, six months after December 1,
1990. Pub. L. No. 101-650, 104 Stat. 5089, 5132. See also endnote 37,
chapter 1.

4In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act amended section
302<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#302>by substituting
"70" for "fifty," "95" for "seventy-five" and "120" for "one
hundred" each place they appeared. Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827. This
change was effective October 27, 1998. *Id.*

5In 1997, section 303
<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#303>was amended by
adding subsection (b). Pub. L. No. 105-80, 111 Stat. 1529,
1534. In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act amended section
303 <http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#303> by substituting
"December 31, 2047" for "December 31, 2027." Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat.
2827.

6The Copyright Renewal Act of 1992 amended section
304<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#304>by substituting
a new subsection (a) and by making a conforming amendment in
the matter preceding paragraph (1) of subsection (c). Pub. L. No. 102-307,
106 Stat. 264. The Act, as amended by the Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act, states that the renewal and extension of a copyright for a
further term of 67 years "shall have the same effect with respect to any
grant, before the effective date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension
Act [October 27, 1998], of a transfer or license of the further term as did
the renewal of a copyright before the effective date of the Sonny Bono
Copyright Term Extension Act [October 27, 1998] under the law in effect at
the time of such grant." The Act also states that the 1992 amendments "shall
apply only to those copyrights secured between January 1, 1964, and December
31, 1977. Copyrights secured before January 1, 1964, shall be governed by
the provisions of section
304(a)<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#304>of title 17,
United States Code, as in effect on the day before . .
.[enactment on June 26, 1992], except each reference to forty-seven years in
such provisions shall be deemed to be 67 years." Pub. L. No. 102-307, 106
Stat. 264, 266, as amended by the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act,
Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827, 2828.

In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act amended section
304<http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html#304>by substituting
"67" for "47" wherever it appeared in subsection (a), by
substituting a new subsection (b) and by adding subsection (d) at the end
thereof. Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827. That Act also amended
subsection 304(c) by deleting "by his widow or her widower and his or her
children or grandchildren" from the first sentence of paragraph (2), by
adding subparagraph (D) at the end of paragraph (2) and by inserting "or, in
the case of a termination under subsection (d), within the five-year period
specified by subsection (d)(2)," into the first sentence of subparagraph
(4)(A). *Id.*

7 In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act amendment to
subsection 304(b) completely deleted the previous language that was
originally part of the 1976 Copyright Act. Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat.
2827. That earlier statutory language continues to be relevant for
calculating the term of protection for copyrights commencing between
September 19, 1906, and December 31, 1949. The 1976 Copyright Act extended
the terms for those copyrights by 20 years, provided they were in their
renewal term between December 31, 1976, and December 31, 1977. The deleted
language states:

The duration of any copyright, the renewal term of which is subsisting at
any time between December 31, 1976, and December 31, 1977, inclusive, or for
which renewal registration is made between December 31, 1976, and December
31, 1977, inclusive, is extended to endure for a term of seventy-five years
from the date copyright was originally secured.

The effective date of this provision was October 19, 1976. That effective
date provision is contained in Appendix I, herein, as section 102 of the
Transitional and Supplementary Provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976.
Copyright Act of 1976, Pub. L. No. 94-553, 90 Stat. 2541, 2598.

In addition, prior to the 1976 Copyright Act, Congress enacted a series of
nine interim extensions for works whose copyright protection began between
September 19, 1906, and December 31, 1918, if they were in their renewal
terms. Without these interim extensions, copyrights commencing during that
time period would have otherwise expired after 56 years, at the end of their
renewal terms, between September 19, 1962, and December 31, 1976. The nine
Acts authorizing the interim extensions are as follows, in chronological
order:
Pub. L. No. 87-668, 76 Stat. 555 (extending copyrights from September 19,
1962, to December 31, 1965)
Pub. L. No. 89-142, 79 Stat. 581 (extending copyrights to December 31, 1967)
Pub. L. No. 90-141, 81 Stat. 464 (extending copyrights to December 31, 1968)
Pub. L. No. 90-416, 82 Stat. 397 (extending copyrights to December 31, 1969)
Pub. L. No. 91-147, 83 Stat. 360 (extending copyrights to December 31, 1970)
Pub. L. No. 91-555, 84 Stat. 1441 (extending copyrights to December 31,
1971)
Pub. L. No. 92-170, 85 Stat. 490 (extending copyrights to December 31, 1972)
Pub. L. No. 92-566, 86 Stat. 1181 (extending copyrights to December 31,
1974)
Pub. L. No. 93-573, 88 Stat. 1873 (extending copyrights to December 31,
1976)

8The effective date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act is
October 27, 1998.

9See endnote 8, *supra.*