Are trailers copyrighted or not?
Are trailers copyrighted? Is it allowable to freely use a movie trailer in one's own works or website?
Here is a screenshot of an example where they had given the name of the publisher and an amazon.com link to sell the movie. The application references Walt Disney Pictures and is linked to this Amazon page. Is this a fair usage?
Best Answer
Yes, essentially all produced art is copyrighted simply by being created.
Is it fair use? IANAL (I am not a lawyer) but in the US "fair use" covers typically low fidelity reproduction for the purposes of parody, criticism, news or education.
However, on one hand publishers want trailers to be distributed as widely as possible because people being interested in the movie makes them money, especially if you direct traffic to a legal purchase method.
On the other hand, Disney is known for being very protective of its IP and may decide to send you a cease and desist, which you would be wise to comply with. If you make significant income from your use of their property you may also find yourself sued for royalties.
Edit
Bruce Calvert found the definitive answer:
The defence of 'fair use', where reporters or teachers use copyrighted material for socially valuable purposes, does not apply to movie trailers.
Take note in your risk calculations that is was in fact Disney that was the winning party in that case.
Pictures about "Are trailers copyrighted or not?"
Is trailer copyrighted?
Are the movie trailers copyrighted? Almost all creative works \u2014 including movie trailers \u2014 are protected by copyright law. You cannot legally copy, distribute, publicly display, or make derivative works from them without permission of the copyright holder, except in limited fair use circumstances.Is trailer music copyrighted?
You will need the owner's permission in order to use a copyrighted song in a movie trailer. You have alluded to the fair use defense which is a defense to copyright infringement. However, you do not have a good fair use defense.Are movie trailers in the public domain?
Trailers for movies released before 1964 are in the Public Domain because they were never separately copyrighted. The law at the time granted the owner 28 years to file a copyright registration.Can you use movie trailers?
Movie studios will be protected where someone uses clips of their copyrighted films to make and sell previews, a US court ruled this month. The defence of 'fair use', where reporters or teachers use copyrighted material for socially valuable purposes, does not apply to movie trailers.Fair Use - Copyright on YouTube
More answers regarding are trailers copyrighted or not?
Answer 2
Yes, they are copyrighted. The precedent-setting case was filed by the Walt Disney company, so you should definitely get their permission first.
http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2003/august/trailers-are-not-fair-use-of-movie-copyrights/
On the other hand, I have heard that very old trailers, say earlier than the 1970s, were never issued with a copyright notice and are usually Public Domain. However, I cannot find a page on the Internet to confirm this.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Michael Kanivetsky, Tom Fisk, James Frid, Pixabay