How to write a copyright notice and where to put it on your website
Before we dive into How to write a copyright notice and where to put it on your website I just wanted to be clear before you read on that I am not a legal professional. The content of this blog post is intended for informational purposes only (UK). None of the content in this blog post or on social media should be construed as legal advice.
I am however a proud affiliate of Lucy Legal who provides legal templates such as website Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, as I believe that having the right website policies in place should be easily accessible to independent business owners and straightforward to implement.
As such there are some *affiliate links (clearly marked) in this blog post in case this is useful for you. I would only ever recommend a service or business that I feel is helpful to you and that I have used or would use myself.
Ok, let's dive in.
How to copyright your work
When you create an original piece of work be that written work, a photograph, an illustration or website content such as a blog, this will automatically receive copyright protection. As stated on the government website:
"You get copyright protection automatically - you don’t have to apply or pay a fee. There isn’t a register of copyright works in the UK." - https://www.gov.uk/copyright
So what is a copyright notice and do you need one for your website content?
What is a website Copyright notice?
A copyright notice is a short notice using either the word 'copyright' or the universally accepted copyright symbol © followed by the owner of the copyrighted work and the date it was published.
So if the website content is automatically copyright protected why do you need a copyright notice?
A copyright notice does not give you any extra level of protection so therefore it is not a legal requirement to have one, but it can act as a deterrent. By adding a copyright notice to your website you are making a clear statement that the website content is subject to copyright and identifies the copyright owner.
How often should you update your Copyright notice date?
With a website, it's likely that your content is regularly updated (and if not it should be - both your audience and Google like up-to-date and current content) therefore you should update it each year you add or change any content.
The copyright date determines the date of the first publication as well as the most recent. See the copyright examples below.
How to write a copyright notice (with copyright notice example)
Your copyright notice should consist of:
"Copyright". As I already mentioned you can either use the word "Copyright" or the copyright symbol "©" in your notice.
Year of publication, or the period from first publication until the year in which you made the most recent update (i.e. 2020-2023)
Copyright owner's name. So either your own name or the name of your business
Copyright statement such as "All rights reserved" where you withhold all rights, or if you do grant permission for any content to be reproduced or for redistribution then that can be added to your copyright notice.
Copyright notice example:
© [publish date] [name of copyright holder/business name]. All rights reserved.
As you’ll see in my footer my copyright notice is as below because I have blog content from 2021 and I made updates to my website content in 2023.
© 2021-2003 Kohlab Creative. All rights reserved.
Where should you add a Copyright notice on your website?
The copyright notice should be placed so that anyone can see it and it should be placed on each page and blog post. Therefore it is ideal to include your copyright notice in the footer of your website as this duplicates across every page. and is clearly visible to your website visitors.
You can also expand upon the Intellectual Property Rights in a website ‘Terms of Use’ policy, along with any disclaimers of how the information should or should not be used and its intended purpose. It’s advisable to seek the appropriate legal wording for a Terms of Use policy. If you’d like help with your website policies I can recommend Lucy Legal’s templates (*please note these are affiliate links therefore I do get a small financial reward if you were to purchase these products at no additional cost to you).
Get Legit® Legal Essentials - this bundle contains terms of use for your website including a GDPR compliant Privacy Policy; Intellectual Property clauses and Disclaimers, Cookies Policy | Use discount code ‘sammyphillips10’ for 10% off
So just to summarise any original work you produce such as website content and blog posts is automatically copyright protected however, it is highly recommended that you still include a copyright notice.
As explained in point 4 above, How to write a copyright notice, a copyright notice should include the word “Copyright” or the symbol “©” followed by the date (including the first date/year of publication and the latest update (year), followed by the Copyright owner, so most likely either your name or the name of your business. You can also add a statement such as “All rights reserved.”
Ideally, place this in the footer of your website so that it is clearly visible on each page and there you have it!
BONUS TIP: Remember to update the year if and when you add or update any website content - perhaps set yourself a reminder in January to check this to make sure it’s always up-to-date.
For further information about Copyright and Intellectual Property visit: https://www.gov.uk/topic/intellectual-property/copyright
