hard2miss Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 I have a question. If the Bible is the most sold book ever, who is raking it in ? I mean does the Vatican or someone hold the rights to it and do they get a percentage so to speak ? Obviously the people who contributed to it and tho's who translated the original texts wont be getting any royalties but is there someone who is ? If not then could you make your own version of it as you would understand it and sell it for profit or would you find yourself in court or mysteriously disapear ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadingNorth Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 Copyright on any book expires 70 years after the death of the author; in the case of any particular translation of the Bible, that rule applies to the people who wrote the translation. The King James, for instance, published in 1603, is centuries out of copyright and anybody can produce a copy of it for sale. More recent translations, such as the NIV, are still under copyright, so you can't do so without the permission of the authors. I suspect, in the case of a religious work like the Bible, that nobody actually enforces their copyright and demands royalties; or if they do, they will insist that the royalties go to some Christian charity or other. So far as I'm aware, all major Bible-publishing businesses put all of the profits into missionary and charity work. If you write your own translation of the Bible, such as the Yorkshire Dialect version produced by .. was it Spike Milligan? ...then you can claim your own copyright on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hard2miss Posted January 20, 2010 Author Share Posted January 20, 2010 Im not after writing one, I mearly wondered if someone had a monopoly on it and if you had to get a nod and pay someone if you wanted too. I know copy write laws ect exist but something like this the church could be exempt and keep some sorts of overall rights to it. Maybe if you did a version that they did not like you would land yourself in court or something ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hard2miss Posted January 20, 2010 Author Share Posted January 20, 2010 http://lab16.wordpress.com/2008/02/15/amazon-kindle-and-bible-copyrights/ In the US, only the King James Version is held in the public domain. For the UK, the King James Version is held in perpetual Crown Copyright and not public domain Thats the sort of thing I meant, I have answered my own question So theres such thing as perpetual copy right ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vague_Boy Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 I have a question. If the Bible is the most sold book ever, who is raking it in ? Probably whoever publishes each different edition. With no author fees, copyright or revisions to worry about, it's probably a very straightforward job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadingNorth Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 http://lab16.wordpress.com/2008/02/15/amazon-kindle-and-bible-copyrights/ Thats the sort of thing I meant, I have answered my own question So theres such thing as perpetual copy right ? Apparently so, for specifically exempted books. I didn't know that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Matt] Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 Im not after writing one, I mearly wondered if someone had a monopoly on it and if you had to get a nod and pay someone if you wanted too. I know copy write laws ect exist but something like this the church could be exempt and keep some sorts of overall rights to it. Maybe if you did a version that they did not like you would land yourself in court or something ? The Bible is for the most part public domain. You can do what you like with it and have pretty much always been able to. Even enligghtened individuals such as Thomas Jefferson published his own version of Bible (by far the best version if you ask me) that simply threw out anything he deemed implausible/supernatural at the dawn of the 19th century. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_Bible http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Matt] Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 http://lab16.wordpress.com/2008/02/15/amazon-kindle-and-bible-copyrights/ Thats the sort of thing I meant, I have answered my own question So theres such thing as perpetual copy right ? Booo... for the most part the bible is public domain in most countries. I guess the UK is still stuck in the dark ages.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hard2miss Posted January 20, 2010 Author Share Posted January 20, 2010 J. M. Barrie's play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up is covered by special legislation establishing that Great Ormond Street Hospital may collect royalties in perpetuity.So its not just for the Bible. The law in the US that is extended copyright is known has been known as the micky mouse act, as its something to do with micky mouse having an extended copyright, or the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. I didnt know either but wondered how it worked with the Bible. I think they all probably chip in and give the Pope a few bob out of it tho anyhow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[Matt] Posted January 20, 2010 Share Posted January 20, 2010 I think they all probably chip in and give the Pope a few bob out of it tho anyhow Its not like that <removed> and his vile organisation needs the money... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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