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Research Guides@TCC Libraries

Copyright and Fair Use: Research Guide

About Public Domain

Public Domain refers to works that are not copyrighted.  There are several reasons why a work might be in the public domain.

  • The work is old enough that the copyright has expired. Works published before 1924 are the public domain in the United States.
  • The creator chose not to copyright the work. Many works produced by the U.S. government are born in the public domain.
  • The work is not original enough to be copyrighted.  Ideas and facts are not protected by copyright law.

 

Content created by TCC Libraries is licensed as CC BY 4.0