January 1st is Public Domain Day in many countries. What this means is, certain works – music, books, artwork, etc. – have reached the end of their copyright protection and are now available to the general public for free.
On January 1, many works from 1930 will transfer to public domain. This includes books, films, songs, paintings, cartoons, and comic strips.
What I like about items entering public domain is that they can now be seen and shared by anyone and everyone without licensing fees. So, for example, a non-profit could host a public domain movie night and ask for donations at the door. They would make money to operate on without having to pay any of it to a movie studio or production company.
Some of the works entering public domain in 2026 include:
- The initial version of the character, Betty Boop.
- Dashiell Hammet’s novel, The Maltese Falcon.
- T.S. Eliot’s Ash Wednesday.
- Nine new Mickey Mouse cartoons.
- The films Soup to Nuts (with the Three Stooges), All Quiet on the Western Front, Animal Crackers (starring the Marx Brothers), and King of Jazz.
- Four songs by the Gershwin brothers.
- The songs, Georgia on My Mind and Dream a Little Dream of Me.
There is much more than what I’ve listed here. Please check out the article I linked above for more details, as well as a deep dive into U.S. public domain.
Also, the image on this post is an English logo of the 2025/26 Public Domain Day in Poland. The image is, of course, public domain.
What do you think of limits on copyright and the use of public domain?
RB
Oh! I hadn’t heard of this – off to check it out! Hope you had a festive Christmas and all the best for the new year ahead ๐ฅณ๐๐
Many thanks, Linda, and best wishes to you and yours, as well. ๐
Especially in this digital age, I’m glad there are protections for creators, but I’m also glad that there’s a limit for the reasons you describe when they go into public domain. ๐
The internet can make it difficult to protect our creations, but as you note, it’s nice to know they will be free to everyone at some point.
Happy New Year, Richard. ๐
Same to you, mate! Looking forward to a year’s worth of poetry from you. ๐
After a certain amount of time, our labors have yielded sufficient personal reward. They eventually become part of the general culture and should be freely available to everyone who wishes to use and learn from them.
I’m not surprised you feel that way, Swabby. I appreciate your input.
Happy new year.
And to you, my friend! Thank you for stopping by.
Who says nothing in life is free. Free to enjoy without any encumberance except what we put on ourselves.
Absolutely, Jasper. Hope you have a wonderful 2026.
After 70 -95 years of protection (in the US) I see the entrance into the world of public domain as a rebirth replete with new potential. Great post and link, Richard. Perhaps it will inspire my muse to breathe new life into one of the released tales. Happy and healthy 2026 to you and your loved ones! ๐ฅณ
That’s fantastic, MM. I hope you can find some inspiration in those old pages.
And best wishes to you and your loved ones, as well. Cheers, my friend!
Wishing you and your loved ones a very happy new year๐
Same to you, Luisa. Cheers! ๐
เฌ(เฉญหแตห)เฉญ* ๐๐๐
That’s very interesting, I didn’t really think about it too much. I thought it would have to be 100 years old, and so I thought it wouldn’t be of much interest . I have learnt something today. Thank you.
I’m glad to hear that, Morag! Thank you for stopping by. ๐
You are welcome. Thank you for all your inspiring posts. All the best for you and your blog as we enter a new year.
And the same to you, my friend!
Thank you ๐ซ๐
In all honesty, I never thought much about this. I always kinda assumed that if it is on the internet, itโs pretty much for everyone. At least for all the well known things.
Letโs say, if I make a drawing of Donald Duck and post it on here, do I then have to refer to Walt Disney? I am honestly not sure of the rules.
I did one day found an old drawing of mine on facebook. And then some other person started selling on t-shirt.
I wanted to die of emberrassment, because it wasnโt well drawn ๐ซฃ๐คญ
But it was a cute concept (because it contained Sharky). And if it makes others happy, I am not too bothered about it
I feel all artists should be able to profit off their works, but in the modern age I think it can be much harder to control that. I’ve seen copies of my books for sale on eBay for higher prices than what I ask for on Amazon.
But, in the end, art is meant to be shared, so if others enjoy my work, I’m happy.
Wowโฆ I was clueless about thisโฆ I m surely going to check this out!
Elliotโs Ash Wednesday definitely caught my eye ๐
Very nice! Hope you find more treasures to read. ๐
Very cool, Richard. Thanks for the share.
Thanks, Pat!