Originally Posted by John Lawrence Schick
Well, I listened to the entire video. A lot of baloney in there. One thing that caught my attention, is getting the US copyright is based on the honesty of the writer. The writer has to specify what parts of the song or recording they created prior to the AI app. All the writer has to say is it's all mine in its entirety.
That is fine, but if you are ever sued and are answering questions under oath, you need to be careful and truthful. Lying in court can lead to serious consequences, including perjury if the legal elements are met. And because copyright issues can turn on what the creator actually did, the safest thing is always to be honest from the start.
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As far as an official copyright. It's not needed until a lawsuit occurs. At that time a US Copyright is needed just to get into court. A writer can get a copyright any time prior to the court appearance. Of course, in court the copyright is useless. The writer still has to prove his work was stolen. A monumental task!

On a side note... ASCAP is now accepting "partially" AI generated music. Exactly how ASCAP is going to determine to which degree the song is AI generated is a big mystery. I imagine the same way the US Copyright Office makes the determination - from what the writer tells them. Not to worry, all writers are honest people.

John


Bingo. If you are aiming for a hit, you always have to think about lawsuits down the road. And I agree that honesty matters. I would never lie on a copyright form, because it is a legal document and false statements on it can cause serious problems.

Also, a copyright registration is not just paperwork you can ignore until someone sues. For a U.S. work, registration is generally required before you can file an infringement lawsuit, and it can also affect what remedies are available. Of course, even with a registration, you still have to prove that someone copied your work.

The main point is simple: if any part of the work was made with AI, that should be disclosed accurately. The safest course is always to be straightforward and truthful on the application. The lawyer lays it out on how to do that, which is basically how to exclude AI on a copyright form, which can be tricky if it is AI done partially.