Page:Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corporation v. Wall-street.com, LLC, et al..pdf/6

Rh Under the Copyright Act of 1976, as amended, copyright protection attaches to “original works of authorship”–prominent among them, literary, musical, and dramatic works–“fixed in any tangible medium of expression.” 17 U. S. C. §102(a). An author gains “exclusive rights” in her work immediately upon the work’s creation, including rights of reproduction, distribution, and display. See §106; Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U. S. 186, 195 (2003) (“[F]ederal copyright protection… run[s] from the work’s creation.”). The Copyright Act entitles a copyright owner to institute a civil action for infringement of those exclusive rights. §501(b).

Before pursuing an infringement claim in court, however, a copyright claimant generally must comply with §411(a)’s requirement that “registration of the copyright claim has been made.” §411(a). Therefore, although an owner’s rights exist apart from registration, see §408(a), registration is akin to an administrative exhaustion requirement that the owner must satisfy before suing to enforce ownership rights, see Tr. of Oral Arg. 35.

In limited circumstances, copyright owners may file an infringement suit before undertaking registration. If a copyright owner is preparing to distribute a work of a type vulnerable to predistribution infringement–notably, a movie or musical composition–the owner may apply for preregistration. §408(f)(2); 37 CFR §202.16(b)(1) (2018). The Copyright Office will “conduct a limited review” of the application and notify the claimant “[u]pon completion of the preregistration.” §202.16(c)(7), (c)(10). Once “preregistration… has been made,” the copyright claimant may institute a suit for infringement. 17 U. S. C. §411(a). Preregistration, however, serves only as “a preliminary step prior to a full registration.” Preregistration of Certain Unpublished Copyright Claims, 70 Fed. Reg. 42286 (2005). An infringement suit brought in reliance on