The Graphic Artists Guild has submitted a response to a proposed rulemaking by the Copyright Office on Group Registrations of Unpublished Works. Currently, graphic artists do not have a group registration option; among visual artists, only photographers have a group registration option, and that is only for published photos. The Guild has advocated for extending a group registration option to other works of visual arts.

The proposed rulemaking by the Copyright Office establishes a new group registration option for unpublished works: up to five works may be submitted for the group registrations; all works must have the same author or joint authors; and each work must be published in the same administrative class (for example, works of the visual arts, works of the performing arts, literary works, etc.).

Notably, the group registration option will replace the current “unpublished collection” option. In its notice in the Federal Register, the Office states that the unpublished collection option is “ineffective” since it permits the registration of an unlimited number of works, whereas a more limited option would permit the Office to more easily examine each submission for its ability to be copyrighted, resulting in a better record and more efficient system.

In our response, the Guild welcomed the extension of a group registration option for graphic works. However, we raised a number of concerns with the proposed rulemaking, notably that limiting group registration to just five individual works is unfeasible for graphic artists, who often generate a greater number of works (sketches, revisions, alternate versions) in the execution of a single project. We also asked for the Copyright Office to issue an opinion on what constitutes publication for online works since, in a digital age, the distinction between “published” and “unpublished” is often confused.