1116 Serials, Newspapers, and Newsletters at a Glance
This Section provides an overview of the similarities and differences between the group registration options for serials, newspapers, and newsletters.
For information concerning the specific requirements for these group registration options, see Sections 1107 (serials), 1108 (newspapers), and 1109 (newsletters).
| Group Registration Requirements | Serials | Newspapers | Newsletters |
| Type of work |
Each issue must be a serial, as defined in Section 1107.1 |
Each issue must be a newspaper, as defined in Section 1108.1 |
Each issue must be a newsletter, as defined in Section 1109.1 |
| Group Registration Requirements | Serials | Newspapers | Newsletters |
| Collective work | Each issue must be a collective work | Each issue must be a collective work | Each issue may be a collective work or a serial that does not qualify as a collective work |
| Are the issues new? | Each issue must be an all-new collective work | Each issue must be an all-new collective work | Each issue must be all- new collective work or an all new issue that has not been published before |
| Publication | Each issue must be published | Each issue must be published | Each issue must be published |
| Frequency of publication | The serial generally must be published at intervals of a week or longer | n/a | n/a |
| Number of issues in the group | The group must include at least two issues | The group must include all the issues published within the calendar month specified in the application | The group must include at least two issues published during the calendar month specified in the application |
| Number of months covered by the group | The group may include up to three months of issues | All the issues must be published within the same calendar month | All the issues must be published within the same calendar month |
| Publication within the same calendar year | All the issues must be published within the same calendar year | All the issues must be published within the same calendar year | All the issues must be published within the same calendar year |
| Title | All the issues must be published under the same title | All the issues must be published under the same title | All the issues must be published under the same title |
| Group Registration Requirements | Serials | Newspapers | Newsletters |
| Author | The author for all the issues must be the same person or organization | The author for all the issues must be the same person or organization | The author for all the issues must be the same person or organization |
| Claimant | The claimant for all the issues must be the same person or organization | The claimant for all the issues must be the same person or organization | The claimant for all the issues must be the same person or organization |
| Work made for hire | Each issue must be a work made for hire | Each issue must be a work made for hire | Each issue may be created by an individual author or they may be created as a work made for hire |
| Claim to copyright | The claim to copyright must be limited to the collective work | The claim in each issue must be limited to the collective work | The claim to copyright may include the authorship involved in creating the newsletter as a whole and the authorship involved in creating the contributions to the newsletter |
| Application requirements | The applicant must use the online application designated for a group of serial issues. | The applicant must use the online application designated for a group of newspaper issues | The applicant must use the online application designated for a group of newsletter issues |
| Deposit copies | The applicant must submit one complete copy of each issue. Each issue must be uploaded in a digital format, and each file must be uploaded to the electronic registration system | The applicant must submit one complete copy of each issue, each issue must be submitted in a digital format, and each file must be uploaded to the electronic registration system | The applicant must submit one complete copy of each issue, each issue must be submitted in a digital format, and each file must be uploaded to the electronic registration system |