the "orphan works " act endangers all artists

Hi scarlet_woman! I guess all artist are having problems worldwide. Same here in our country, we are not at all very much paid for the work we do and most of the times being underpaid for all the commissioned arts done. If it is being passed now in your country, I think it won't be long it will reach our shores too. USA has great influence in our government and I think worldwide. Almost all artists are already struggling and now this? Just my thoughts my friend. Take care always and have a nice day! :)

I know we discuss this sometimes on Wetcanvas and I think it more has to do with not being able to find the artist rather than whether or not it's registered. As far as I know, it says that if, after a reasonable attempt, they can't find who the work is attributed to, it becomes fair game. It's more of a way to protect people who use works who can't find an owner to get permission. It's always good to register your work, but if you sign it, make it public that this is definitely your work, or can otherwise prove that it's your work, I doubt it will become copyright free. The only difference between registering and not registering is that you can sue for more damages when you register. When you don't it's a lot harder and you have to have more proof to recover damages and it will be a smaller amount.