I just want to provide an update to this question I posed five years ago.Was any volume of the Soncino Talmud "published" (i.e. publicly accessible) in the United States within 30 days of its publication in the UK? Answer "yes" and we would know with certainty that that volume was in the Public Domain in the United States.However, that is not the only question that would determine whether a published volume has entered the Public Domain.I was looking today at the 1960 edition of Soncino's Babylonian Talmud. It was published in New York with a copyright notice indicating Soncino as the copyright owner. As all other works published between January 1, 1924 and January 1, 1964, this edition of the Soncino Talmud would need to have had its copyright renewed within 28 years of its publication. It never did. As with so many works published during this period, the work entered the Public Domain, due to a lapse in its copyright renewal.
On Thursday, December 4, 2014 at 1:33:18 PM UTC-5, Aharon Varady wrote:Are you a staff member of a Jewish library or know one who is? Might you have in your personal collection a copy of a first edition Soncino with a purchase receipt?US copyright law considers works published abroad to be subject to US copyright requirements if they are available in the US within a month of their publication abroad. If we can determine that the Soncino Talmud was available in the US within a month of its publication in the UK, then it is likely to be in the Public Domain due to its lack of conformance with the US copyright requirements at the time of its publication.We're trying to nail down a particularly difficult copyright research question that hangs on the earliest date a work was accessible in the United States after publication abroad. Perhaps you or someone you know, can help.The work in question is the Soncino Talmud -- thirty-two volumes that were published in four increments over a span of 15 years (1935-1950). Questions concerning it's Public Domain status have circulated for quite some time, but without adequate copyright research, haven't been able to be determined with confidence.
Are you a researcher who has seen a Jewish newspaper advertisement announcing the availability of the Soncino Talmud?
Let us know and feel free to share this message with other interested parties and discussion groups.Thank you.AharonSoncino Talmud Publication Dates:Fourth week of March, 1935 ("eight volumes") see Chicago Sentinel, 04.04.1935, page 20. The volumes in Nezikim correspond to this publication date.Third week of January, 1937 ("eight volumes") see The Palestine Post, 24.01.1937, page 9. The volumes in Nashim correspond to this publication date.First week of February, 1938 ("eight volumes") see The Palestine Post, 02.10.1938, page 3. The volumes in Moed correspond to this publication date.Third week of February, 1950 ("final six volumes") see The Palestine Post, 24.02.1950, page 8. The volumes in Zeraim, Kodashim, and Toharoth correspond to this publication date.
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