Copyright applies automatically to any original work created by a person (must be created by the author rather than copied) that has a minimal degree of creativity. It must also be "fixed in [a] tangible medium, of expression" meaning that it must in some sense be recorded and perceivable, such as on paper, in a computer file, or on a DVD.
There are eight categories of works protected under copyright law:
- Literary works
- Musical works, including any accompanying words
- Dramatic works, including any accompanying music
- Pantomimes and choreographic works
- Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
- Motion pictures and other audiovisual works
- Sound recordings, which are works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds
- Architectural works
These categories should be viewed broadly and not as a definitive list. For example, computer programs can be registered as literary works, while maps can be registered as pictorial or graphical works.
Some things cannot be copyrighted as a function of law or because the lack sufficient creativity:
- Facts or ideas
- An alphabetically arranged list of names and phone numbers
- Titles, names, short phrases, or slogans (may be protected by trademarks)
- Procedures, methods, systems or processes (may protected by patents)
- Works of the United States government
- Works that have passed into the public domain
