Nirvana has been sued for using an illustration from a 1949 translation of Dante’s “Inferno” on band merchandise. Here's why determining the copyright status of old foreign works can be a hellish undertaking.
The U.S. Copyright Office has released a new application form for authors of “short online literary works”—including articles, blog entries and social media posts—to register up to 50 of these works in a single application for one fee. But archaic definitions of “publication” will likely trip up many authors, whose works may not actually be covered by the new rule.