Originally Posted by Dovster
Randy does not own any copyrights to FlyerTalk for the simple reason that he has not published a claim to them.
He could, if he wished, copyright the name "FlyerTalk" and certain features which are unique to this site.
He can not copyright our posts. We could copyright them and Randy could purchase our copyrights, but I very much doubt he would be interested in doing so.
Anything we publish (like this letter) which does not have a copyright claim placed on it becomes part of the public domain and anyone is free to republish it.
This is completely wrong.
In the US, an author automatically gains a copyright to every work he or she creates, including posts to FlyerTalk. No notification or registration is required.
The only way to lose a copyright is to expressly transfer it to another party. There is no "becoming part of the public domain" because of lack of a notice.
The word "FlyerTalk" cannot be copyrighted. It can be trademarked, which is different.
Anyone who thinks he is free to republish my posts without permission because there is no copyright notice on them had better hope that a court decides it is "fair use."
QL