Interactive Copyright Search Manual

How to Find Out if a Work is Copyrighted? There are several ways to investigate whether a work is under copyright protection and, if so, the facts of the copyright. 1. Examine an actual copy of the work for such elements as a copyright notice, place and date of publication, author and publisher. If the work is a sound recording, examine the disk, tape cartridge, or cassette in which the recorded sound is fixed, or the album cover, sleeve, or container in which the recording is sold;2. Make a search at the Copyright Office catalogs and other records; or 3. Have the Copyright Office make a search for you.

This will cover the search for a copyright renewal in the U.S. Copyright Office online database.