Sleeping Beauty, Beauty & the Beast, Rapunzel, Cinderella and Snow White certainly are. Esmeralda, Wendy, Little Mermaid and Alice in Wonderland probably are, as the books are so old. Pocahontas is an actual historic character. Mulan, Jasmine (possibly), Tiana and Nala are likely copyrighted.
Among the stories they told in their famous fairy tale collection were Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel and other stories that inspired Disney. Stories of Cinderella and these other princesses are in the public domain with a major caveat — it depends on the iteration of the story and Disney's Cinderella et al.
What Disney characters are protected by copyright?
Disney's copyright protection extends to a wide range of creative works, including its iconic characters. These characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Elsa, and many others, have become an integral part of the brand and are essential to the company's success.
Disney does not own the stories of Snow White or Cinderella. The company could not register copyright that would prevent anyone from using the underlying story. However, Disney does own the copyright to the animated films it made featuring those characters.
Legal Use and Intellectual Property Protection of Disney Characters. The Disney Group takes Disney trademark infringement seriously and has copyright and trademark registrations to protect its characters.
"Unofficial" Disney Princesses Ranked! (Tier-List) | SaraNate
Can I use Disney characters in my art?
In order to use the characters legally, you must request permission from Disney Enterprises. Multiple corporate entities of Disney own many of the intellectual property rights of Disney characters. To learn more about which Disney entity owns the character you want to use, visit the Disney website.
Disney's drawings of Disney characters are copyrighted for 95 years after they are first published. If you were to copy or make derivative works from those drawings without Disney's permission, you would be infringing their copyright.
The original Little Mermaid story or 'Den lille havfrue' was published in 1837 and has long since been in the public domain. In 1989 Disney Studios took advantage of the fact that this literary work was in the public domain and released their animated movie.
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.
Who do I contact to request permission to use Disney intellectual property for non-commercial uses such as hand-made artwork, clothing, themed private parties, student projects, stage shows, etc.? These requests are handled by the Disney Legal Department on behalf of Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Copyright protection is available to both characters that have been solely described in writing, as well as characters depicted in a visual or graphic form. What is required is that the character in question possesses original or a set of distinctive traits, and visual representation is not essential.
Mary Poppins She is never named as "Mary Poppins" because the character is not in the public domain. In general, the book character of Winnie the Pooh (think the stuffed teddy bear with no shirt from the original illustrations and toy) is in the public domain. Rita Hayworth Gilda image: Columbia Pictures.
Use “Disney inspired” material including public domain images, themed colors, similar font, etc. Just make sure you do not use any copyrighted material including the names, characters' images, or music.
The American copyright of the novel expired on January 1, 2022, while in Austria and other countries of the European Union it entered the public domain on January 1, 2016.
The stories of Rapunzel, Snow White, and Cinderella were recorded by the Brothers Grimm. The stories existed long before the Grimms recorded them, being integral parts of German folklore. They are now in the public domain and can be used freely.
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.
Furthermore, Pinocchio creator Collodi died in 1890, meaning Pinocchio also transferred into the public domain in 1960, a full 70 years after the author's death per literary public domain regulations.
Believe it or not, the film does not hold any trademark applications or own any trademark registrations at the U.S. PTO. In addition to HOCUS POCUS being the name of this film, it is also a form of words often used by a person performing magic tricks.
Can I put Disney characters on a shirt and sell it?
If you're planning on selling Disney products or characters, you must obtain an official license from the Walt Disney Company. This means that your product must be expressly authorized by the company to be sold legally; without this authorization, you may face hefty fines and other legal consequences.
For example, artists who want to use Mickey Mouse in their creative works must first get permission from Disney (the current copyright holder) until November 2023. After that date, the copyright will expire, Mickey Mouse will enter the public domain, and artists will not need Disney's permission to use Mickey Mouse.
Yes, the design itself would be copyrighted and with Disney, the image/character is most certainly trademarked. So without permission, it would violate both to print, copy, tattoo, paint, etc. (the form of media makes no difference on that - it's still distribution).
