Sample Copyright License Agreement (For Text and Written Works)

Below is a sample copyright license agreement for text and written work. if you are the author, you representative agent or publishing company will send this to the filmmaker/licensee if the license is available for use in a movie in adaptation or for a print run of so many books to sell.

Conversely, if you are looking for the rights to works, you may find the licensor of the work and call or email if the rights are available and they agree on terms, they will send you a copyright license agreement like this below. Please reply for any questions to the post or at moviedistributionfacts@gmail.com

Sample Text Permission and Copyright Agreement

___________________ (“Licensor”) is the owner of rights for certain textual material defined below (the “Selection”). _____________________(“Licensee”) wants to acquire the right to use the Selection as specified in this agreement (the “Agreement”).

Licensor Information
Title of Text (the “Selection”): ________________________
Author: ____________________________
Source publication (or product from which it came): _____________________________
If from a periodical, the ISSN, volume, issue and date. If from a book, the ISBN: __________________________
If from the Internet, the entire URL: __________________________
Number of pages or actual page numbers to be used: _____________________________

Licensee Publication Information
The Selection will appear in the following publication(s) (the “Work”): _____________
(check if applicable and fill in blanks)
[ ] book– title: ______________________________
[ ] periodical– title: _____________________________________
[ ] event handout– title of event: _________________________________________
[ ] website– URL: ___________________________________
[ ] diskette– title: ___________________________________
Name of publisher or sponsor: ___________________________________
Author(s): _____________________________________
Estimated date(s) of publication or posting: ________________________________
Estimated number of copies to be printed or produced (if a book, the estimated first print run): __________________
If for sale, the price: $_____________________
If copies are free to attendees of a program, cost of program: ______________________
If a Website, indicate the average number of visitors per month: ____________________

Grant of Rights
Licensor grants to Licensee and Licensee’s successors and assigns, the:
(select one)
[ ] nonexclusive
[ ] exclusive
right to reproduce and distribute the Selection in:
(select all that apply)
[ ] the current edition of the Work.
[ ] all editions of the Work.
[ ] all foreign language versions of the Work.
[ ] all derivative versions of the Work.
[ ] in all media now known or later devised.
[ ] in promotional materials published and distributed in conjunction with the Work.
[ ] other rights __________________________________

Territory
The rights granted under this Agreement shall be for __________________ (the “Territory”).

Fees
Licensee shall pay Licensor as follows:
(select one and fill in appropriate blanks)
[ ] Flat Fee. Licensee shall pay Licensor a flat fee of $__________ as full payment for all rights granted. Payment shall be made:
[ ] upon execution of this Agreement
[ ] upon publication
[ ] Royalties and Advance. Licensee agrees to pay Licensor a royalty of _____% of Net Sales. Net Sales are defined as gross sales (the gross invoice amount billed customers) less quantity discounts and returns actually credited. Licensee agrees to pay Licensor an advance against royalties of $____________ upon execution of this Agreement. Licensee shall pay Licensor within 30 days after the end of each quarter. Licensee shall furnish an accurate statement of sales during that quarter. Licensor shall have the right to inspect Licensee’s books upon reasonable notice.

Credit & Samples
(check if applicable and fill in blanks)
[ ] Credit. All versions of the Work that include the Selection shall contain the following statement: _________________________________________________
[ ] Samples. Upon publication, Licensee shall furnish ____________ copies of the Work to Licensor.

Warranty
Licensor warrants that it has the right to grant permission for the uses of the Selection as specified above and that the Selection does not infringe the rights of any third parties.

Miscellaneous
This Agreement may not be amended except in a written document signed by both parties. If a court finds any provision of this Agreement invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of this Agreement shall be interpreted so as best to effect the intent of the parties. This Agreement shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of _______________. This Agreement expresses the complete understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter and supersedes all prior representations and understandings.

Licensor
By: ______________________
Name: _____________________
Title: _____________________
Address: _____________________
Date: ________________

Licensee
By: ______________________
Name: _____________________
Title: _____________________
Address: _____________________
Date: ___________________
Tax ID # ________________________

How to Request and Secure Permission to Use Copyrighted Text in Your Book or Film

Copyright owners have the exclusive right to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, and create derivatives of their works. Most others, like filmmakers and distributors and publishers must obtain permission from the copyright owner to lawfully engage in any of these activities. In this post, I will highlight basic ideas on how I and you can secure permission for copyrighted text for your film or book.

Before you decide to use the copyrighted written idea for use in your film or book ask yourself –

Is the material protected under copyright law? Knowing when a work was published or if legal requirements were met is helpful in determining if a work can be used without permission.

General Notes about Securing Permission for Copyrighted Text:

• Usually for text, it is common for Authors/ Agents to charge $150 for a regular permission to license text.

• Copyright Law usually protects text works after 1922.
• If copyright law does not protect it, the owner did not renew the copyright or the work did not minimal standards for copyright protection.

• The Fair Use Law permits you to copy small portions of work for certain purposes such as scholarship or commentary; commentary is usually another writer’s opinion on something.

Exclusive and Non Exclusive Rights:

• A Permissions Agreement that is exclusive is if you are the only person who has the right to use the work as described in the agreement.
• Most permission agreements are nonexclusive and others can use the material in the same way.

For Terms of Use for Permission Agreements:

• Usually, it is a general period of time between 2-6 years, while some agreements prohibit the copyright owner from revoking rights by granting permission irrevocably.

For Territory that a Licensee can Use Text:

• May be limited to a certain geographical area but it is subjective, ask for terms first through the author or agency.

More Notes about Securing Permission for Copyrighted Text:

• Permissions should be obtained before you complete or budget for the work
and start the completion of the work for obvious reasons.

• Sometimes the owner of the work will not require payments, because some artists eager for exposure may agree to suspend payments unless the work becomes profitable or on other factors.

• If you hire someone to create a work, the business will retain the rights only if they are the employee of your company and not just a freelancer. Basically, the company pays them for the job or gives weekly or monthly payments.

• A right of publicity is when a persons name or image is used on for example a cereal box. Have to contact the owner for this, if you are displaying owners name on advertising material.

• If the text is written by two authors- you need permission from both of them.

• Permission to photocopy and distribute materials is online at http://www.copyright.com, CCC clears millions of works through their representatives international and national – it costs 120 membership yearly fee and additional charges for use, they may waive the fee for one time users.

• Unpublished works created after 1978, are protected for the life of the authors plus 70 years.

• Publication does not occur when copies are made and not distributed, only when the text is publicly performed or displayed.

Locating Publishers:

• International Literary Marketplace- http://www.bowker.com/main/home/index.html – searchable online for a fee – books currently available for sale- call them first
• The University of Texas – http://www.lib.utexas.edu/libs/HRC/WATCH/ – has addresses for authors, artists and their copyright holders in US and UK libraries

Paraphrasing and Infringement:

• You have to radically paraphrase work to be so disguised as to be unrecognizable is not copying. It is kind of impossible..

Using Facts:

• You don’t need to ask for permission if you are using facts or fact based theories.
• But you can’t copy more than the facts, which is the expression of them or the arrangement.

• If you don’t have an exclusive agreement your license or permission doesn’t have to be written or valid.

——————————————————————————————————————–

fair use copyrights,copyrights information,copyrights law,licensing copyrights,public domain copyrights,license copyrights,legal copyrights,trademark copyrights,intellectual property copyrights,publication copyrights,author copyrights,permissions agreement,publisher copyrights,authors copyrights,permissions publishing,patent copyrights,permissions fees,permissions guidelines,protect copyrights,get copyright permission,
copyright permission letter,obtaining copyright permission, permission to use copyright,how to get copyright permission,copyright permission request,
obtain copyright permission,copyrights permission,permission to copyright,copyright permission for music,copyright permission template,copyright permission request form,copyright permission letters,copyright permission statement,copyrights and permissions,granting copyright permission,copyright and permission,video copyright permission,