Animal “Selfies” Do Not Qualify for Copyright Protection
October 1, 2014
The United States Copyright Office has recently announced that copyrights will not be issued to any picture taken by a nonhuman. The Copyright Office issued updated rules and regulations at the end of August explaining its policy on copyright protections. The rules state that any works registered by nature, animals, or plants would not be granted copyright protection. Likewise, works purportedly created by supernatural or divine beings cannot be registered.
The dispute that promulgated the issuance of the new rules stems from a “selfie” taken by a monkey in 2011 that has become part of a legal battle between British nature photographer David Slater and Wikimedia Commons. Slater argued he owns the copyrights to all photos taken during his nature excursion, including photos from when a monkey seized his camera and took several pictures of himself and other things. On the other hand, Wikimedia Commons, insisted on distributing the photos for free, arguing Slater was not entitled to copyright protection because he hadn’t taken the pictures, and the monkey could not hold copyright rights, so there is no one to bestow the copyright upon.