This iteration of Mickey Mouse will be the one to enter the public domain — other versions of the character have copyrights that will expire later. Disney has made “Steamboat Willie” (a film just shy of eight minutes) available on YouTube for public consumption.
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.
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.
“OH BOY!” Could Disney LOSE MICKEY MOUSE in 2024? - Disney News Explained
Will Superman become public domain?
But there are limits to what someone can do with public domain characters. For one thing, the character can only be used as it existed 95 years earlier. Let's take Superman, for example, who first appeared in DC's Action Comics #1 in 1938 and enters the public domain in 2033.
With the current laws enacted in the United States, all material will eventually enter the public domain. That being said, there is currently a complete stop on material entering the public domain.
Copyright law in the United States dictates that works published after the 95th year of publication will no longer be affected by copyright. This means that characters such as Superman, Wonder Woman, Mickey Mouse, Captain America, and Batman will be entering the public domain within the next 15 years.
Most notably for the toy industry, these public domain characters include Mickey Mouse, Superman, Winnie the Pooh, Bambi, Batman, and Bugs Bunny. Before you begin placing Batman logos on your toys, however, be mindful that the freedom to use these characters is limited to how they looked when they first appeared.
Although the novel Peter Pan (also known as Peter and Wendy) is in the public domain in the US, the play (and stage adaptations) is in copyright there until December 2023.
The children's book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, written by L. Frank Baum in 1900 is in the public domain. This follows the general rule that any work published before 1923 is in the public domain. The film, The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland and directed in 1939 by Victor Fleming is NOT in the public domain.
Disney argued that because Salten's original 1923 publication of the novel did not include a copyright notice, by American law it was immediately considered a public domain work.
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.
As a direct result of Disney lobbying, in 1998 Congress overhauled the copyright system to retroactively extend everything created between 1923 and 1977 to a 95-year term. That meant Mickey Mouse is safe at Disney until 2023, while Spider-Man won't become public domain until 2057.
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.
HLT: A few major Disney characters, such as Steamboat Willie and Winnie the Pooh, are now in the public domain, and others are expected to join them in the coming years.
Today, animation historians refer to the original Tom and Jerry characters as Van Beuren's Tom and Jerry. Today, all of these cartoons are in the public domain.
For works created by corporations like DreamWorks Animation, the copyright term is 95 years from the date of publication or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever comes first. Since Shrek was created by DreamWorks Animation in 2001, its copyright will not expire until at least 2096.
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.
"Tinker Bell" appeared as a character in J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan, first staged in 1904, and so the parties were in agreement that under copyright law, both the name and the character are in the public domain.
Batman was created in 1939, which means, under current law, the character enters the public domain in 2034. The Joker was created in 1940 and enters the public domain in 2035. If the U.S. Congress hadn't expanded copyright terms, both Batman and the Joker would already be free to use.
As a public domain character with an established reputation, Robin Hood was an attractive feature for comic book publishers from the birth of the medium.
Can Mickey Mouse Copyright be Renewed? No, the Mickey Mouse copyright cannot be renewed. It will expire in 2023 – 95 years after Disney published Mickey Mouse for the first time.
To provide yourself and your work with the greatest protection against falling into the public domain, you need to make your ownership clear through copyright.
The copyright for the original story is now in the public domain, as a classic work of literature. Not every aspect of Frankenstein is public domain, however. Different versions of the monster are subject to copyright protection.
