Public Domain

The Public Domain refers to creative works whose intellectual property rights have expired, been forfeited, or are inapplicable, making them freely available for anyone to use, reproduce, modify, and distribute without permission or payment. In the United States, most works published before 1928 are in the public domain, as are works created by the U.S. federal government. For creators, public domain content is a valuable resource for historical footage, classic music, literature, and imagery that can be used without licensing costs or copyright risk. However, new creative arrangements of public domain works (such as a new recording of a public domain song) can themselves be copyrighted.