A Common Misconception on Copyright and Piracy

Many believe or have been told that if their DVD is to be given away, or "not sold" that they do not need to worry about copyright or piracy. This misguided thinking could not be further from the truth. Even copying one disc and giving it to a friend or colleague is considered piracy. Therefore, we highly stress that you understand your responsibilities in regards to copyright and anti-piracy issues. We hope that this brief questionnaire will introduce you into this very important area.

DVD Copyright Questionnaire

1. Is all the content on your DVD "all original" material?
That is, did you or your company originally create this content?

Download our DVD Content Copyright Certification Form. Complete this form and include it with your master. If you have an official copyright registration from the US Copyright Office, please also include a copy of your registration along with your master.

Note: Do you want to protect your copyright? For a small fee, you can register your material at the US Copyright Office - Library of Congress. This may be the only way you can prove your copyright ownership in court should someone else record or distribute your material without your permission.

2. Did you incorporate any music, songs or sounds into your content?
This is often true in video presentations. This can be any use of music, songs or sound in your content. This can include background music, wav files, MP3 files and sound effects, etc. (i.e. You have the theme music from a major motion picture used as background music to your video. That music is the copyright of another entity and you must received permission to use it on your presentation.)

If you have used ANY music, songs or sound, do you have the license rights to reproduce said material on your DVD?

You must have permission from the original copyright owner. They will issue you a Master Use License and a Mechanical License that you must submit with your master along with our completed and signed DVD Content Copyright Certification Form.

For DVD-ROM or Hybrid DVDs:
Are there any 3rd party executable (.exe) software files on your DVD or in your content?

Any third-party software applications you include on your DVD (Adobe Acrobat Reader, Apple QuickTime, Netscape Navigator, MS Internet Explorer, Etc.) are the intellectual property of the person(s) and/or organizations that originally developed them.

It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute third-party software applications without a distribution license from the property owner. Many Freeware or Shareware programs require a user distribution license from the property rights owner if you want to include them on your DVD. Also, many software companies will require you to included their logo on your DVD artwork if you plan on including their application on your DVD.

The above sound and video copyright guidelines apply to DVD-ROM content as well.

You must obtain a distribution license from the original property rights owner of any 3rd party software on your DVD. Include that documentation with your master along with our completed and signed DVD Content Copyright Certification Form.

NOTE: This questionnaire is only a guideline provided by DVD Duplication 4 Less as an introduction to copyright protection and anti-piracy awareness and is in no way intended to represent legal counsel. We recommend you contact the appropriate agencies that govern copyright and anti-piracy for your particular genre and/or an attorney who specializes in copyright law with any questions or concerns on your copyright needs.