1904.3 Claim in a Published or Unpublished Work Contradicted by Information Provided Elsewhere, such as in the Registration Materials
As a general rule, if the applicant affirmatively states that the work is unpublished or fails to provide a date of first publication in the application, the Office will register the work as an unpublished work, unless the information provided in the deposit copy or in other sources of information known by the Office clearly indicate that the work has been published.
Likewise, if the applicant affirmatively states that the work has been published and provides a date of first publication in the application, the Office generally will register the work as a published work, unless information provided in the deposit copies or in other sources of information known by the Office clearly suggest that the work is unpublished.
If the deposit copy(ies) or other information known by the Office clearly suggest that the work is published or unpublished and if it appears that the applicant provided or failed to provide a date of publication by mistake, the registration specialist may communicate with the applicant. For examples of situations that may prompt a communication concerning publication, see Chapter 600, Sections 612.7 (A) and 612.7 (B).