The beloved character Mickey Mouse will enter the public domain for the first time after 95 years, as the copyright of an early version of Mickey Mouse with Disney expires on New Year’s Day. The copyright of “Steamboat Willie,” the first short film by Walt Disney featuring Mickey Mouse, which premiered in 1928 comes to an end.
Steamboat Willie vs Mickey Mouse
“Under US Copyright Law for works published or registered before 1978, Disney will no longer own the rights to the character, and the work will become public domain,” a release by Walt Disney World stated.
Other prominent characters under Public domain
According to the release, other characters of the Walt Disney Company such as A. A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh, and characters such as the Little Mermaid and Cinderella created by Hans Christian Andersen and The Brothers Grim are already marked as public domain.
What is the public domain?
A property under Public Domain can be interpreted as “No permission is needed to copy or use public domain works. A work is generally considered to be within the public domain if it is ineligible for copyright protection or its copyright has expired.”
Public domain works can serve as the foundation for new creative works and can be quoted extensively. They can also be copied and distributed to classes or placed on course web pages without permission or paying royalties.
However, it is under consideration that Walt Disney Company plans to take on the issue of public domain this year. Walt Disney Company would not let its protected works go swiftly under the public domain.