In truth, the earliest version of Mickey Mouse, which first appeared in the 1928 landmark animated short Steamboat Willie, will be entering the public domain when the film's copyright expires in 2024.
The beloved mouse that is nearly a century old will soon enter public domain — the original Mickey Mouse's copyright expires in 2024. This anthropomorphic mouse is recognizable even by the silhouette of his ears and, in some ways, has been the face of The Walt Disney Co. since his 1928 creation.
In 1928, copyrights lasted for 28 years, with the option for renewal of another 28 years. As of 2023, Mickey Mouse was published almost 95 years ago. The copyright of the original Mickey Mouse character – as it appeared in “Steamboat Willie” – expires on January 1, 2024.
According to US copyright law, the rights for a character expire 95 years after the publication of the original work. Disney will lose the Mickey Mouse copyright for Steamboat Willie in 2024, since the short animated film was produced and distributed in 1928.
Disney's trademarks will still be protected as, unlike copyrights, they have no time limit. Therefore, it is possible that you may not be able to use the name Mickey Mouse, but okay to use his image. Elements of Mickey's appearance will still be protected. For example, Mickey did not wear those white gloves until 1925.
Will Disney Lose Mickey Mouse To The Public Domain In 2024?
Will Disney lose Mickey Mouse in 2024?
Any future iterations of Mickey Mouse – including any showing Mickey Mouse in color – are still under Disney's control. But the copyright on the Steamboat-Willie-version will run out in 2024 after 95 years. Initially, copyrights only lasted 28 years.
Pooh, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, Owl, Eeyore and Christopher Robin all became public domain on January 1 last year when the copyright on A.A. Milne's 1926 book, Winnie-the-Pooh, with illustrations by E.H. Shepard, expired.
In the US, Popeye is considered “work for hire” because “Segar was an employee of King Features Syndicate when he introduced Popeye into the Thimble Theatre comic strip.” This means that Popeye will enter the public domain in the US on January 1, 2025.
Walt Disney Co. has controlled the rights to Winnie-the-Pooh since 1961 and kept depictions of Milne's talking animals true to the spirit of the family-friendly material. The copyright expired in January 2022. Since then, Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends have been available to the public for other purposes.
Mickey Mouse, Batman, Superman and Bugs Bunny all become public domain in the next 10 years. The Hundred Acre Wood has seen some pretty unsettling things over the years.
As per the US copyright law, the rights to characters expire 95 years after publication (for works published or registered before 1978). Thus, Disney, which is also called the House of Mouse due to the character, may lose the rights to the character.
EPS from continuing operations for the nine months ended July 1, 2023 decreased to $1.14 from $1.66 in the prior-year period. Excluding certain items(1), diluted EPS for the nine months ended July 1, 2023 decreased to $2.94 from $3.22 in the prior-year period.
While Disney may no longer have copyright protection for Winnie the Pooh, there are still opportunities for legal recourse that Disney can take. Disney still maintains the rights to the Winnie the Pooh characters created after 1926, including Tigger.
Well, the studio had no choice. That's because the 1926 storybook, titled Winnie-the-Pooh, which introduced the titular character, passed into the public domain at the start of 2022, voiding its copyright, and thus Disney's media exclusivity over the character.
The copyright will expire by law in 2023. Disney cannot obtain a Mickey Mouse copyright extension. However, Disney also still owns trademarks for Mickey Mouse, which do not expire in 2023.
To utilise Disney characters without violating their rights, you must obtain permission from The Walt Disney Company or its subsidiaries. Its characters are protected by copyright and trademark laws, and unauthorised use can lead to legal consequences.
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in 1910, before the cutoff of January 1, 1928. The longest-living author of this work died in 1943, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 79 years or less.
Since Shrek was created by DreamWorks Animation in 2001, its copyright will not expire until at least 2096. Therefore, it will not enter the public domain for many decades. Who owns Shrek? Shrek is owned by DreamWorks Animation which is part of Comcast's Universal Pictures and NBCUniversal.
Thanks to copyright term extensions over the years, Disney still owns the rights for Milne's books and characters published after 1926 — including Tigger — as well as later materials published by the company using Milne's characters.
The Betty Boop character is a Fleischer trademark. But–Betty Boop 1930s movie posters were not copyrighted (or not renewed?) as standalone items, so are public domain. Fleischer tried to use its active trademark on the character to stop a third party's use of the ancient PD art. Judge said this was a no-go.
Unlike Superman and the Lone Ranger, no one ever made a successful follow up about Johnny Dollar after it's radio run (several short-lived efforts to make a TV show never made it past the pilot-stage), something that allowed the franchise to lapse into public domain.
When does Tom and Jerry (cat and mouse characters) become public domain? January 1, 2036. That's when the first Tom and Jerry cartoon, Puss Gets The Boot, enters the public domain.
While it is likely one of the best-selling books ever published, the actual total sales since its first publication are unknown due to the many reductions and different versions. The story has been a public domain work in the U.S. since 1940.
Under the Copyright Term Extension Act, books published in 1929, films released in 1929, and other works published in 1929, will enter the public domain in 2025. Sound recordings that were published in 1924 will enter the public domain. The character Popeye the Sailor Man will enter the public domain in 2025.
The Bond books written solely by Ian Fleming are public domain in countries that recognise a 50 year posthumous copyright term e.g. Canada, Australia, etc.), Fleming having died in 1964. In countries which recognise a 70 year term (e.g. the UK/EU, USA, etc.), they will be public domain after the end of 2034.
