public domain

public domain
public do·main /-dō-'mān/ n
1: land owned directly by the government
2: the realm or status of property rights that belong to the community at large, are unprotected by copyright or patent, and are subject to appropriation by anyone

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. . 1996.

public domain
n.
The body of knowledge and creative works, including works of film, music, literature, and inventions, whose copyrights are not owned by anyone and are thus considered available for free use by anyone.

The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. . 2008.


public domain
1. (USA) land owned by the government.
2. property rights not attached by anyone. In the UK so far as heritable or real property is concerned, almost anything that is not owned by someone is owned by the Crown or inherited by the Crown. The main practical use of the phrase in contemporary UK law is to denote intellectual property rights that are either still open or have been let out to the public in such a way that they are not protected by copyright patent, trademark or by obligations of confidence.

Collins dictionary of law. . 2001.


public domain
The status of any creative work, invention, or device that is not protected by copyright law. Such items are available for use without permission. Often, works enter the public domain after patent, copyright, or trademark rights have expired or been abandoned.
Category: Patent, Copyright & Trademark → Copyright Law

Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. . 2009.


public domain
n. Government-owned land; all publications, processes, and inventions that are not protected by patent or copyright.

Webster's New World Law Dictionary. . 2000.


public domain
Land that is owned by the United States. In copyright law, literary or creative works over which the creator no longer has an exclusive right to restrict, or receive a royalty for, their reproduction or use but which can be freely copied by the public.

Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.


public domain
Land that is owned by the United States. In copyright law, literary or creative works over which the creator no longer has an exclusive right to restrict, or receive a royalty for, their reproduction or use but which can be freely copied by the public.

Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.

public domain
n.
   1) in copyright law, the right of anyone to use literature, music or other previously copyrighted materials after the copyright period has expired. Although the copyright laws have been changed several times, a rule of thumb would be that the last possible date for copyright protection would be 50 years after the death of the author. Thus, the works of William Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Jack London and other classic writers are in the public domain and may be published by anyone without payment of a royalty.
   2) all lands and waters owned by federal, state and local governments.
   See also: copyright

Law dictionary. . 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Public domain — Domain Do*main , n. [F. domaine, OF. demaine, L. dominium, property, right of ownership, fr. dominus master, owner. See {Dame}, and cf {Demesne}, {Dungeon}.] 1. Dominion; empire; authority. [1913 Webster] 2. The territory over which dominion or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Public Domain —   [Abk. PD, dt. »öffentlicher Bereich«], im angelsächsischen Urheberrecht Bezeichnung für Werke, Produkte oder Verfahren, an denen keine Eigentumsrechte mehr bestehen. Dies ist der Fall, wenn Patente oder Urheberrechte erloschen sind, nicht… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • public domain — public do main1 noun in the public domain if something such as information is in the public domain, people in general know about it because it is not secret 2. ) something such as a book, play, or piece of software that is in the public domain… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • public domain — public do main n [singular] law something that is in the public domain is available for anyone to have or use ▪ The information is not currently in the public domain . ▪ Public domain software is sometimes called shareware …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • public domain — ➔ domain …   Financial and business terms

  • public-domain — public domainˈ adjective (computing) Available to the general public free of charge • • • Main Entry: ↑public …   Useful english dictionary

  • public domain — ☆ public domain n. 1. public lands 2. the condition of being free from copyright or patent and, hence, open to use by anyone …   English World dictionary

  • public domain — public domain, adj. Law. 1. the status of a literary work or an invention whose copyright or patent has expired or that never had such protection. 2. land owned by the government. [1825 35, Amer.] * * * …   Universalium

  • Public domain — This article is about public ownership of creative works. For use in relationship to public lands, see Public domain (land). For how the public domain applies to Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:Public domain. Intellectual property law …   Wikipedia

  • Public-Domain — Inoffizielles Logo, welches gemeinfreies Material kennzeichnet Die Gemeinfreiheit bezeichnet alle Werke, welche keinem Urheberrecht mehr unterliegen oder ihm nie unterlegen haben. Das im angloamerikanischen Raum anzutreffende Public Domain ist… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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