621.9 (H) Discrepancies Involving the Copyright Notice 621.9 (H) (1) Published Works
The presence of multiple year dates in the copyright notice for a published work (e.g., © Mountain View Software 2004, 2005, 2006) may indicate that portions of the work have been previously published or previously registered. Likewise, a copyright notice that precedes the date of publication for a published work by two or more years (e.g., Rise and Shine, published January 2008, © Sunny Day Inc. 2005) may indicate that the work contains previously published or previously registered material. In this situation, the registration specialist may question an application if the applicant fails to complete the Limitation of Claim screen in an online application or spaces 5, 6 (A), and/or 6 (B) in a paper application.