The Copyright Society

What The Copyright Society does

The Copyright Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional organization founded in 1953 and headquartered at 1 East 53rd Street, New York. It is devoted to advancing the study and understanding of copyright law across literature, music, art, theater, motion picture, television, computer software, architecture, and other works of authorship, and serves copyright attorneys, entertainment lawyers, IP practitioners, copyright scholars, students, and creators. Its core offerings are the peer-reviewed Journal of the Copyright Society — the leading U.S. law review devoted exclusively to copyright law, with over 70 volumes — and a membership program (individual and group tiers, with the membership year running October 1 to September 30) that bundles access to CLE webinars, the media library, the member directory, and the mentorship program. The Society also runs recurring live programming through nine specialized subcommittees (AI, audiovisual, copyright adjacent, copyright fundamentals, international, literary & publishing, music, software/digital games, and visual & fine arts), the annual Copyright + Technology Conference in New York each Fall (with transcripts distributed via Westlaw, Lexis, and Heinonline), and the 50th Annual Meeting scheduled for June 14-16, 2026. The Copyright Fixation Podcast, Copyright 101 educational resources, and sponsorship/donation channels round out the offering set.

Underlying technology is intentionally lightweight: the Society operates a WordPress-class website (copyrightsociety.org) that serves as the membership portal, event ticketing system, journal access point, and media library, with Stripe as the third-party payment processor for memberships and event registrations. There is no developer-facing API, no proprietary AI tooling, and no documented software products beyond the website platform — the Society is a content-and-community organization, not a software company. Leadership comprises President Dan Cooper, Vice President Theo Cheng, and an academic editorial team led by Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Townsend Gard (Tulane Law), with Alfred C. Yen (Boston College Law) recently completing his tenure as editor.

The business model is a multi-stream nonprofit revenue structure: recurring membership dues, journal subscriptions, event registration fees, corporate sponsorships, and donations. Distribution is community-led and self-serve via the website for memberships and individual event tickets, supplemented by in-person and virtual events. There are no venture capital, private equity, or parent-company ownership interests; the organization is independently governed by its board and operates in the United States, primarily New York.

Name

The Copyright Society

Legal name

The Copyright Society of the USA

Website

https://copyrightsociety.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1953

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Copyright Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1953 in New York that advances the study of U.S. copyright law for copyright attorneys, IP practitioners, scholars, and creators through its peer-reviewed Journal, membership program, CLE programming, annual conferences, and mentorship.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Professional Association Services

NAICS

Other Publishers (51319)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Scholarly Society & Association Publishing (EDAGAFAK)

Keywords

• Copyright law education
• Intellectual property association
• Professional society membership
• Legal continuing education
• Scholarly legal publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: The organization generates revenue through individual and group membership fees. Membership year runs from October 1 to September 30. Members receive access to CLE webinars, the peer-reviewed journal, media library, member directory, and networking events.
2. Journal Subscriptions: The Journal of the Copyright Society is a leading U.S. law review exclusively devoted to copyright law. It serves practitioners and scholars on copyright topics and history. The peer-reviewed journal is available by subscription.
3. Event Registration: Revenue generated from registration fees for annual meetings, programs, and CLE events. Events include the 50th Annual Meeting scheduled for June 14-16, 2026, and the Copyright + Technology Conference held annually in New York each Fall.
4. Sponsorships: The organization offers annual sponsorship opportunities as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Sponsors are instrumental in providing programming on leading issues in intellectual property and networking events.
5. Donations: The society accepts donations from supporters of advancing the study and understanding of copyright law.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Copyright Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization that advances the study and understanding of copyright law. It sells individual and group memberships that grant access to a peer-reviewed law journal (the Journal of the Copyright Society), CLE webinars, annual meetings, the Copyright + Technology Conference, a media library, a member directory, a mentorship program, and educational resources such as Copyright 101. It also generates revenue through event registration fees, journal subscriptions, annual sponsorships, and donations.

Product overview

The Copyright Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1953 that advances the study and understanding of copyright law. The organization's core offerings center on its peer-reviewed Journal of the Copyright Society, membership program with individual and group tiers, and live/on-demand educational programs including the annual Copyright + Technology Conference. Additional services include a Media Library of recorded programs, the Copyright Fixation Podcast, a Member Directory, Copyright 101 educational resources, and a Mentorship Program. The Society operates as a professional membership organization rather than a technology product company, focusing on copyright law education, networking, and scholarly publication rather than software or AI-powered tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Journal of the Copyright Society A peer-reviewed academic journal that is the leading U.S. law review exclusively devoted to copyright law, serving practitioners and scholars with articles on copyright hot topics, history, and analysis.
• Membership Program Individual and group membership tiers providing access to the society's journal, CLE webinars, media library, member directory, mentorship program, and networking events for copyright, entertainment, and IP professionals.
• Programs and CLE Events Live and on-demand educational programs including free CLE webinars, annual meetings, and professional development courses covering copyright law topics for practitioners and members.
• Copyright + Technology Conference An annual conference held in New York each Fall that brings together industry and academic voices to discuss the latest technology and copyright issues, with transcripts published in the Journal and available on Westlaw, Lexis, and Heinonline.
• Copyright Fixation Podcast A podcast series covering copyright law topics and discussions with experts in the field, available as a digital audio content offering.
• Copyright 101 Educational Resources Educational resources including Copyright Basics, Copyright FAQ, and Copyright Terms & Definitions designed for those new to copyright law, including students and creators.
• Mentorship Program A program connecting members for professional development and one-on-one guidance in copyright and intellectual property fields.

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• International Trademark Association (INTA): Global membership association of brand owners and trademark professionals. Comparable professional society model with dues, conferences, publications, and committees, but focused on trademarks rather than copyrights.
• Motion Picture Association (MPA): Trade association representing major film and television studios. Comparable professional society structure with significant overlap in audiovisual copyright topics covered by The Copyright Society's Audiovisual subcommittee.
• Association of American Publishers (AAP): Trade association representing book, journal, and education publishers in the U.S. Operates the same kind of member-driven advocacy and event programming model as The Copyright Society, with overlap in literary and publishing copyright issues.
• Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA): U.S. trade body representing the recording industry with policy, legal, and educational mandates. Comparable copyright expertise and event-driven engagement with significant overlap in music copyright topics covered by The Copyright Society's Music subcommittee.
• American Bar Association Section of Intellectual Property Law: Division of the American Bar Association serving IP practitioners with CLE, publications, and committees. Directly competes for the same copyright/IP attorney members, sponsorships, and CLE dollars as The Copyright Society but on a much larger scale.
• American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA): U.S. trade association of IP lawyers offering CLE, committee work, and an annual meeting. Comparable to The Copyright Society in serving IP professionals but with a much broader patent, trademark, and copyright remit.
• Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA): Trade association for software, information, and digital content companies. Comparable membership/event model with significant overlap in software/digital games copyright topics covered by The Copyright Society's Software subcommittee.

Direct peers

• Authors Guild: U.S. nonprofit writers' organization providing advocacy, legal resources, and education on copyright and publishing. Directly comparable membership-based nonprofit professional society model targeting creators and authors in literary/publishing copyright.
• Copyright Alliance: Nonprofit focused on copyright advocacy and education for creators and policymakers. Closely overlaps The Copyright Society in copyright education, scholarly output, and outreach to creators and legal professionals.

Regional players

• International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI): Global non-profit IP association offering congresses, committees, and publications. Comparable professional society model with a more international remit, overlapping with The Copyright Society's International subcommittee.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/copyrightsoc
• Facebookfacebook.com/CopyrightSociety

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Copyright Society