You may be doing Copyright Notices wrong: It's time to rethink your approach

April 30, 2023

/ 3 min read

Copyright is a legal concept that provides creators with exclusive rights over their original works. On websites, copyright notices inform users that the content is protected and cannot be copied, distributed, or altered without permission. However, you might be using the wrong format for your copyright notice.

The common misconception

Many people believe that the standard copyright format should be:

However, this format can be misleading. The purpose of a copyright notice is to indicate the first date of publication for content. Consequently, the date should not be changed every year, as this would alter the “first publication” date.

The correct approach

Instead of using the standard format, consider the following alternative:

This format not only signifies the correct “first publication” date but also provides other benefits.

Benefits of including a start date

By including a start date in your copyright notice, you can:

Demonstrate your company’s experience and longevity, conveying trustworthiness to your audience
Facilitate tracking and protecting your intellectual property over time
Emphasize your commitment to providing up-to-date and relevant content

Code snippets

The code snippets provided below will display the start year and the current year, or only the current year if the start year is the same as the current year:

JavaScript

function getCopyright(startYear) {
  var currentYear = new Date().getFullYear();

  if (startYear === currentYear) {
    return "Copyright &copy; " + currentYear + " Your Company";
  } else {
    return "Copyright &copy; " + startYear + " - " + currentYear + " Your Company";
  }
}

var copyrightNotice = getCopyright(2010); // Replace 2010 with your start year
console.log(copyrightNotice); // "Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"

PHP

function getCopyright($startYear) {
  $currentYear = date("Y");

  if ($startYear == $currentYear) {
    return "Copyright &copy; $currentYear Your Company";
  } else {
    return "Copyright &copy; $startYear - $currentYear Your Company";
  }
}

$copyrightNotice = getCopyright(2010); // Replace 2010 with your start year
echo $copyrightNotice; // "Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"

Python

from datetime import datetime

def get_copyright(start_year):
    current_year = datetime.now().year

    if start_year == current_year:
        return f"Copyright &copy; {current_year} Your Company"
    else:
        return f"Copyright &copy; {start_year} - {current_year} Your Company"

copyright_notice = get_copyright(2010)  # Replace 2010 with your start year
print(copyright_notice) # "Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"

Ruby

def get_copyright(start_year)
  current_year = Time.now.year

  if start_year == current_year
    return "Copyright &copy; #{current_year} Your Company"
  else
    return "Copyright &copy; #{start_year} - #{current_year} Your Company"
  end
end

copyright_notice = get_copyright(2010) # Replace 2010 with your start year
puts copyright_notice # "Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"

Java

import java.time.Year;

public class CopyrightNotice {
  public static String getCopyright(int startYear) {
    int currentYear = Year.now().getValue();

    if (startYear == currentYear) {
      return "Copyright &copy; " + currentYear + " Your Company";
    } else {
      return "Copyright &copy; " + startYear + " - " + currentYear + " Your Company";
    }
  }

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    String copyrightNotice = getCopyright(2010); // Replace with your start year
    System.out.println(copyrightNotice); // "Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"
  }
}

C#

using System;

class Program
{
  static string GetCopyright(int startYear)
  {
    int currentYear = DateTime.Now.Year;

    if (startYear == currentYear)
    {
      return $"Copyright &copy; {currentYear} Your Company";
    }
    else
    {
      return $"Copyright &copy; {startYear} - {currentYear} Your Company";
    }
  }

  static void Main()
  {
    var copyrightNotice = GetCopyright(2010); // Replace 2010 with your start year
    Console.WriteLine(copyrightNotice); //"Copyright © 2010 - 2023 Your Company"
  }
}