Purpose of Copyright

Our copyright statute has its origins in Article 1, Section 8 of the United States Constitution, which provides that Congress shall have the power "To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries."

This brief passage not only authorizes our current copyright law, but also clearly states that the primary purpose of intellectual property rights, like copyright, is to promote the growth of knowledge and innovation by providing creators with rights to (and, therefore, incentives to create) their works.

Article 1, Section 8 also sets up the competing interests that the copyright law must attempt to satisfy simultaneously: the creator's interests in rewards, control, and acknowledgment associated with the work vs. the public's interests in the widest possible use and dissemination of information. Achieving these often contradictory goals and objectives involves a difficult balancing act.

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