Also known as: Copyright Clause · IP Clause
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A constitutional objective authorizing Congress to grant limited exclusive rights to authors and inventors. The objective advances knowledge and technological development by balancing incentives for creation against public access to ideas and information.
Congress enacts a statute granting authors exclusive rights for limited times. Author Alice sues publisher Bob for reproducing her book without permission. The court upholds the law because it promotes the progress of science by securing exclusive rights to writings.
Penelope Price compiles a rural telephone directory with factual listings. A rival publishes the same facts without copying her original selection or arrangement. The court holds that the rival may use the facts because copyright protects only original expression and thereby promotes progress by allowing others to build on raw information.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Pilar Pena designs an unpatented boat hull. A state law prohibits competitors from using a direct-molding process to copy the hull. The court invalidates the law because it creates an impermissible state monopoly that conflicts with the federal balance between innovation incentives and free competition.
Pavel Petrov records a commercial parody of a copyrighted song. The original rights holder sues for infringement. The court finds fair use because the parody transforms the work and serves the constitutional goal of promoting progress through criticism and commentary.
Pearl Porter publishes a book explaining a new accounting method and includes blank forms. A competitor copies the forms but not the explanatory text. The court holds that the forms are not copyrightable because they embody the method itself rather than original expression that advances science.
Phoebe Park's news service gathers and distributes current events. A competitor copies the factual reports and resells them. The court rejects a property claim in the news itself because facts are not created by the reporter and granting exclusivity would hinder rather than promote the progress of science.
No. The clause permits Congress to promote progress through dissemination as well as creation. Historical practice allowed copyright to attach upon publication, and courts have recognized that incentives for distribution serve the constitutional objective.
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No. The clause establishes a federal balance that preempts state laws granting additional monopolies on unpatented or uncopyrighted items. Such laws undermine the constitutional goal of limited exclusivity followed by free public use.
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No. The clause protects only original expression. Facts and ideas remain free for others to use so that subsequent authors and inventors can build upon them and thereby advance science and the useful arts.
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…and a constitutional requirement. The primary objective of copyright is not to reward the labor of authors, but 'To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts.' Art. I, §8, cl.8. Accord, Twentieth Century Music Corp. v. Aiken, 422 U.S. 151, 156 (1975). To this end, copyright assures authors the right to their original expression,…