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Special Deposit Requirements
Special deposit requirements exist for many types of works. The following are prominent examples of exceptions to the general deposit requirements:

If the work is a motion picture, the deposit requirement is one complete copy of the unpublished or published motion picture and a separate written description of its contents, such as a continuity, press book, or synopsis.

If the work is a literary, dramatic, or musical work published only in a phonorecord, the deposit requirement is one complete phonorecord.

If the work is an unpublished or published computer program, the deposit requirement is one visually perceptible copy in source code of the first 25 and last 25 pages of the program. For a program of fewer than 50 pages, the deposit is a copy of the entire program. For more information on computer program registration, including deposits for revised programs and provisions for trade secrets, request Circular 61,Copyright Registration for Computer Programs.

If the work is in a CD-ROM format, the deposit requirement is one complete copy of the material, that is, the CD-ROM, the operating software, and any manual(s) accompanying it. If registration is sought for the computer program on the CD-ROM, the deposit should also include a printout of the first 25 and last 25 pages of source code for the program.

In the case of works reproduced in three-dimensional copies, identifying material such as photographs or drawings is ordinarily required. Other examples of special deposit requirements (but by no means an exhaustive list) include many works of the visual arts such as greeting cards, toys, fabrics, and oversized materials (request Circular 40a, Deposit Requirements for Registration of Claims to Copyright in Visual Arts Material); video games and other machine-readable audiovisual works (request Circular 61); automated databases (request Circular 65, Copyright Registration for Automated Databases); and contributions to collective works. For information about deposit requirements for group registration of serials, request Circular 62, Copyright Registration for Serials.

If you are unsure of the deposit requirement for your work, write or call the Copyright Office and describe the work you wish to register.

Unpublished Collections
Under the following conditions, a work may be registered in unpublished form as a “collection,” with one application form and one fee:

• The elements of the collection are assembled in an orderly form;
• The combined elements bear a single title identifying the collection as a whole;
• The copyright claimant in all the elements and in the collection as a whole is the same; and
• All the elements are by the same author, or, if they are by different authors, at least one of the authors has contributed copyrightable authorship to each element.
• An unpublished collection is not indexed under the individual titles of the contents but under the title of the collection.

NOTE: A Library of Congress Control Number is different from a copyright registration number. The Cataloging in Publication (CIP) Division of the Library of Congress is responsible for assigning LC Control Numbers and is operationally separate from the Copyright Office. A book may be registered in or deposited with the Copyright Office but not necessarily cataloged and added to the Library’s collections. For information about obtaining an LC Control Number, see the following website: http://pcn.loc.gov/pcn. For information on International Standard Book Numbering (ISBN), write to: ISBN, R.R. Bowker, 630 Central Ave., New Providence, NJ 07974. Call (877) 310-7333. For further information and to apply online, see www.isbn.org. For information on International Standard Serial Numbering (ISSN), write to: Library of Congress, National Serials Data Program, Serial Record Division, Washington, DC 20540-4160. Call (202) 707-6452. Or obtain information from www.loc.gov/issn.