In October 1998, President Clinton signed into law the Copyright Term Extension Act named for the late Sonny Bono. This law, which took effect immediately, extends the duration of U.S. copyright protection for most works by an additional 20 years.

Here is a summary of the changes brought about by this legislation.

Publication Date	Prior Protection	New Protection
1978 or later	starts when created, continues through life + 50 years	starts when created, continues through life + 70 years
1964-1977	75 years	95 years
1923-1963	75 years if renewed; 28 years if not renewed (now P.D.)	95 years if renewed; 28 years if not renewed (now P.D.)
1922 or earlier	75 years (now P.D.)	same

The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act also extends protection for unpublished works, works of corporation authorship, and other categories of copyrighted material. The legislation can be viewed at the Library of Congress Copyright Office Web site at http://www.loc.gov/copyright/legislation/s505.pdf

Elsa Peterson, based in Norwalk, CT, is a freelance editor specializing in college textbook development. Email: epltd@earthlink.net

INCREASE IN COPYRIGHT REGISTRATION FEES

The Copyright Office has announced that Congress has approved that the registration fees for photographers are scheduled to increase $20 to $30 per registration on the first of August.

Originally, the proposed fee was $45. Trade groups rejected the fee on the basis that high fees would discourage copyright registration among photographers.

Marilyn J. Kretsing, Assistant General Counsel at the Copyright Office, said, "The office is issuing regulations for fees it charges for special services. The Office is initiating new fees and amending other existing fees based on the actual costs to the Office for providing such services. The Office is establishing these fees so it can more nearly recover the costs of providing these services to the public.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia L. Sinn, Senior Attorny, Copyright GC/ I&R, P.O. Box 70400, Southwest Station, Washington, D.C. 20024. The General Counsel's Web site: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/fedreg/fee98-2a.html