This was brought up in another thread, but I've seen it come up enough that I'm going to go ahead and post something here.
The question asked was "How can there be a copyright on the Bible?".
An actual lawyer will be able to give a more detailed explanation, but I went over enough in the way of copyright law during my MBA to answer this.
In the United States, if a work is beyond a certain age (the age varies based on the type of work), then it is considered to be in the "public domain" and as such can no longer be copyrighted in and of itself. The various centuries-old manuscripts are thus public domain, as is the KJV and translations of similar vintage.
However, if a work in the public domain receives an "innovation", then the person who produces the innovation can seek a new copyright on the basis of this innovation. For example, the RSV, NIV, and other such translations represent "innovations" on the various manuscripts in that they represent new(er) translations. Likewise, if a person was to include maps and images of the Middle East in the back of a KJV then they could seek a copyright on the basis of those maps and images.
Either way, the Bible - like other holy books - can in fact be copyrighted under US law if certain conditions are met.
People who reside in other countries should look at what the copyright law for their country stipulates about the matter.
The question asked was "How can there be a copyright on the Bible?".
An actual lawyer will be able to give a more detailed explanation, but I went over enough in the way of copyright law during my MBA to answer this.
In the United States, if a work is beyond a certain age (the age varies based on the type of work), then it is considered to be in the "public domain" and as such can no longer be copyrighted in and of itself. The various centuries-old manuscripts are thus public domain, as is the KJV and translations of similar vintage.
However, if a work in the public domain receives an "innovation", then the person who produces the innovation can seek a new copyright on the basis of this innovation. For example, the RSV, NIV, and other such translations represent "innovations" on the various manuscripts in that they represent new(er) translations. Likewise, if a person was to include maps and images of the Middle East in the back of a KJV then they could seek a copyright on the basis of those maps and images.
Either way, the Bible - like other holy books - can in fact be copyrighted under US law if certain conditions are met.
People who reside in other countries should look at what the copyright law for their country stipulates about the matter.