U.S. Copyright Office Issues Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to Create Group Registration Option for Short Online Literary Works
Issue No. 737 - December 21, 2018


The Copyright Office has published a notice of proposed rulemaking to create a group registration option for short online literary works. To qualify for this option, each work must contain at least 100 but no more than 17,500 words. The works must be created by the same individual, and that individual must be named as the copyright claimant for each work. The works must all be published online within a three-calendar-month period. If these requirements have been met, the applicant may submit up to 50 works with one application and one filing fee. The applicant must complete the online application designated for a “literary work” and upload a digital copy of each work.


The Office seeks public comments on the proposed rulemaking, which will be considered in promulgating a final rule.


The proposed regulation and instructions on how to submit a comment are available here. Written comments must be received no later than February 19, 2019, at 11:59 p.m. eastern time.