Page:Compendium of US Copyright Office Practices (1973).pdf/428

S-73

NOTICE CONTAINING THE YEAR DATE IN WHICH COPYRIGHT WAS SECURED PLUS AN EARLIER DATE OR DATES NOT APPLICABLE TO THE WORK

This memorandum concerns our procedure in cases where there are two or more year dates in the copyright notice and we have ascertained that the earlier date or dates do not refer to anything. In this situation, copyright in the entire work has been secured in the last year named in the notice, and there is no previous registration or publication to which the earlier dates might refer. The question raised by such a notice, of course, is whether the earlier dates have any effect on the term of copyright.

Since this question has apparently not been decided by the courts, no "antedated notice" warning letter or circular should be sent. On the other hand, the question is not wholly free from doubt. Therefore, the application and certificate should be annotated in all such cases to show the dates in the notice. 6-64