Posted: 9/3/2002 6:15:29 AM EDT
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Here's the deal. My Uncle, Stetson Risdon, (Deceased 12 years), was one of the first Americans to take up residence on the island of St. Maarten in the netherlands Antilles (West Indies). When he passed away, I went down there to settle his estate, and dispose of his personal effects, some of which returned stateside with me. While going through my storage the other day, I found 13 reels of 8mm film that he took of the island from 1957 to 1985. The island was undeveloped, (still had a dirt airstrip!), when he first got there. He was a historical figure on the island, being the first one to bring ice cream there, (among other things). These films are invaluable from a historical perspective, and have possible commercial value to the right people. I don't have the $$, (disabled veteran), to convert them to digital masters, let alone market them, but I would like to convert them, and get copies to the historical people, (museum), down there, and maybe a few other private individuals. QUESTION: Can I copyright them, so no one else can use them for profit, and how do I do it, how expensive is it to copyright? Any other considerations/ideas? Thanks in advance.... |
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they are "copyrighted" as soon as they are created. Here is the tricky part. if anyone uses it without your permission, you must prove that you created it first. you can send them to get it copyrighted. then you dont have to prove that you had it first, you have to copyrights. last i checked, you can sue from $1 to $10k per use. you can look up "copyright" and you can find some sites about it. http://www.benedict.com/ later lojack |