Facsimile Reproduction of 1922 Book

[dmaxwell14]

I am curious if it would be legal commercially exploit a book that has been published in 1922. It is currently in public domain (Google Books even provides the scans from back to front). The author is of German nationality and died in 1928.

The idea is to reprint the publication verbatim, with page-by-page scans of the original work. The reprints would be sold in the United States, with for-profit purposes.

I have research US and EU copyright laws and have not found regulations which pertain directly to facsimile reproduction of books. The big question here is: If the book is in public domain, may I reprint the exact material to sell for profit?

 

[FlyingRon]

The book does appear to be in the public domain under all the German, EU, and US strandards. You're free to make whatever use of it you want.
Yes, you are free to make verbatim copies. The only caveat is trademarks (notably the original publisher). If they are still active, you should not be using these in a way that would confuse your copies with the publishers mark.

 

[dmaxwell14]

Follow-up question

Thank you for your response!

I am curious if the book would still be under public domain if the publisher once had copyright ownership, hypothetically.

 

[quincy]

Thank you for your response!

I am curious if the book would still be under public domain if the publisher once had copyright ownership, hypothetically.

The original publication, the one from 1922, is in the public domain.

However, it is possible that someone holds a copyright in a newer edition of the book that they created. If text has been changed in any way or if illustrations have been added or if there are any other copyrightable elements added to a newer edition, then you cannot reprint that version of the book.

You are only free to use the text from the original 1922 version of the book.

Is that answering your question?

 

[dmaxwell14]

The original publication, the one from 1922, is in the public domain.

However, it is possible that someone holds a copyright in a newer edition of the book that they created. If text has been changed in any way or if illustrations have been added or if there are any other copyrightable elements added to a newer edition, then you cannot reprint that version of the book.

You are only free to use the text from the original 1922 version of the book.

Is that answering your question?

Thank you for your generous time.

Regarding the trademark issue, would the publisher own the styles used in formatting the text (ornate script, lettering, illustrations)? If we reproduce the document as a facsimile, for-profit, would we breach trademark laws by preserving the original style?

 

[FlyingRon]

No just his trademark (company name usually) and logos. Typefaces are not protectable (no matter how old) and again, anything that old is in the public domain.

Yes, things that were copyrighted that are sufficiently old (the worst case in your situation was the old German 80 years after the author's death), they do pass into the public domain and nobody has any specific claim on them.

 

[quincy]

Thank you for your generous time.

Regarding the trademark issue, would the publisher own the styles used in formatting the text (ornate script, lettering, illustrations)? If we reproduce the document as a facsimile, for-profit, would we breach trademark laws by preserving the original style?

It depends on the book. The trademark issue refers to the copying of any protected identifying marks of the publisher. For example, you cannot reprint the "Grosset and Dunlap" or "Doubleday" or other publisher imprints which are often found on the cover page.

It is generally best to, and I recommend that you, have the particular book you wish to copy looked at by a publishing law professional, to determine what rights (if any) may still attach.

Good luck.

 

[dmaxwell14]

Privacy and Publicity Rights

Thank you quincy for your informative response.

I hope to commercially reproduce a 1922 Bible compiled by author "XXXX" who died in 1930. If I used his/her name on the editor's note, mentioning that the publication is a reproduction of XXXX's 1922 Bible, would I be infringing XXXX's Privacy and Publicity Rights. Please keep in mind that the author is of German nationality.

 

[quincy]

Thank you quincy for your informative response.

I hope to commercially reproduce a 1922 Bible compiled by author "XXXX" who died in 1930. If I used his/her name on the editor's note, mentioning that the publication is a reproduction of XXXX's 1922 Bible, would I be infringing XXXX's Privacy and Publicity Rights. Please keep in mind that the author is of German nationality.

No. You would not be infringing on the privacy/publicity rights of the author who died in 1930.

For one thing, privacy and publicity rights generally die with the author (and not all countries recognize these rights).

For another thing, those who republish public domain works will generally acknowledge and accredit the original author and publisher.