Ever wondered why Walt Disney never got sued for intellectual property theft?C’mon,
guy ripped off so many Hans Christian Anderson and Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales! And he never paid said authors any royalty fees! Granted that they’re dead, but shouldn’t their families be entitled to proceeds from their works? Such would be a small price to pay, considering accumulated wealth of Walt Disney’s billion dollar enterprise.
But alas, Mr. Walt Disney, you see, is a marketing genius. He knew how to exploit allowable usage of public domain information, and he built for himself an empire in process.
And if Walt Disney can do it, so can you! After all, we all have access to public domain information. We don’t even need a touch of that famous Disney magic. We just have to weave our own creative spin on things.
But first, basics…
Public domain information is defined as any body of creative works and other knowledge that is not protected by US copyright laws. Copyright protection needs further verification, but by force of statute, works done prior to 1923 are public domain information. The law also includes works done prior to 1978, for as long as life of author plus seventy years does not exceed current year.
The term “body of creative works and other knowledge” includes literary works, music, movies, artworks, scientific ideas, and inventions, just to name a few. So, quite literally, public domain information is an ocean of many promises and splendid discoveries for anyone who would decide to dip their feet in its inviting waters.
And public domain information is free. Everything that you’ll earn from it is net profit!
Walt Disney made good use of public domain information by making updating old classics into movies for new, during his time at least, generation. That was creative spin he used to market works that are quite archaic to make them seem new and fresh. He found his audience, and he made his fortunes. There’s no reason why you can’t do it.
Ah, budget constraints you say. But we are internet marketers, dear friend. That’s beauty of web, you see. Seldom do we have to spend a substantial amount to invest on something. Many avenues are available for us to make good use of free public domain information!
Here are some ways to use public domain information. They would surely earn you significant gains!
1. Republish old literary works as e-books. The classics you see in bookstores are prime examples of earning from public domain information. The publishers did not have to buy rights for books they have decided to distribute. You could do same with e-books. Search your local library for old works, and scan them. Convert images to text with a text bridge program, edit errors, package them nice in .pdf format, and you’re all set to market a royalties-free product!
