2019 is a Big Year for Art Entering the Public Domain

On Jan 1, 2019, we not only ushered in a new year but also an unprecedented amount of creative works entering the public domain. “Public domain” refers to creative works that are not protected by copyright so anyone can use them in any way they would like, such as reselling or using the material to create new or updated versions, without having to obtain permission from the previous owners nor compensating them.

Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke University School of Law’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain said in an interview with  Smithsonian Magazine, “We haven’t had a day quite like this in decades. . . The public domain has been frozen in time for 20 years, and we’re reaching the 20-year thaw.”

Read the whole article here.