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An early version of Mickey Mouse, the famous Disney character, will soon belong to you, me and everybody else.
这只开始了好莱坞帝国的老鼠，以及其他一些角色、电影和书籍，将于1月1日进入公共领域。
The mouse that started a Hollywood empire, along with several other characters, movies, and books will enter the public domain on January 1st.
这只开创了好莱坞帝国的老鼠，以及其他几个角色、电影和书籍将于1月1日进入公共领域。
Public domain is the term to describe creative works that are no longer protected by U.S. copyright law. Once a work enters the public domain, it can legally be shared, performed, reused, or repurposed without permission or cost.
公共领域是用来描述不再受美国版权法保护的创意作品的术语。一旦作品进入公共领域，它可以在没有许可或费用的情况下合法分享、表演、重复使用或重新利用。
Mickey Mouse, and Minnie Mouse, first appeared publicly in the 1928 film Steamboat Willie. Copyright law at the time provided protection for 75 years. But in 1998, U.S. law extended copyright protection for another 20 years.
米老鼠和米妮老鼠首次公开亮相是在1928年的电影《蒸汽船威利》中。当时的版权法为其提供了75年的保护。但在1998年，美国法律将版权保护期延长了20年。
Jennifer Jenkins is head of Duke University’s Center for the Study of Public Domain. Jenkins says copyright law is sometimes called the Mickey Mouse Protection Act. As the character is about to enter the public domain, she says “This is it. This is Mickey Mouse. This is exciting because it’s kind of symbolic.”
詹妮弗·詹金斯是杜克大学公共领域研究中心的负责人。詹金斯表示，版权法有时被称为“米老鼠保护法”。随着这一角色即将进入公共领域，她说：“这就是了。这就是米老鼠。这是令人兴奋的，因为它在某种程度上是象征性的。”
In a statement, the Disney Company told The Associated Press, “Ever since Mickey Mouse’s first appearance in the 1928 short film Steamboat Willie, people have associated the character with Disney’s stories, experiences, and authentic products.” The company added, “More modern versions of Mickey will remain unaffected by the expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright,…”
迪士尼公司在一份声明中告诉美联社：“自从米老鼠首次在1928年的短片《蒸汽船威利》中亮相以来，人们一直将这个角色与迪士尼的故事、体验和正品产品联系在一起。”公司补充说：“米老鼠更现代化的版本将不受《蒸汽船威利》版权到期的影响，…”
People will only be able to use the version of the mouse in Steamboat Willie that has become public. However, observers expect the courts to be busy in the coming years judging what is inside and outside Disney’s ownership.
人们只能使用已经进入公共领域的《蒸汽船威利》中的老鼠版本。然而，观察人士预计未来几年法院将忙于判断什么属于迪士尼所有。
Disney also holds a trademark on Mickey to represent the company and its brand. That law bars the use of the character as a Disney product identifier for anyone except Disney.
迪士尼还持有以米老鼠为代表公司及其品牌的商标。该法律禁止除迪士尼外的任何人将该角色用作迪士尼产品标识。
Others in the public domain
公共领域中的其他作品
Another famous animal character, Tigger, will also join his friend Winnie the Pooh in the public domain. The bouncing tiger first appeared in the book The House at Pooh Corner by British writer A.A. Milne. It turns 96 in January.
另一位著名的动物角色，跳跃的老虎泰
格，也将与他的朋友小熊维尼一同进入公共领域。这只弹跳的老虎首次出现在英国作家A.A.米尔恩的书《维尼熊的家》中。明年1月，它就要96岁了。
The silly old bear Pooh, himself, became public property two years ago when Milne’s book Winnie the Pooh came of age. The soft-spoken bear, no longer protected by copyright, is seen terrorizing women in this year’s horror film Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey.
而憨厚的小熊维尼本身则在两年前成为公有财产，当时米尔恩的书《维尼熊》进入了公共领域。这只温和的小熊，不再受版权保护，在今年的恐怖电影《维尼熊：血与蜜》中被看作在恐吓妇女。
Other creative works entering the U.S. public domain are Charlie Chaplin’s film Circus, Virginia Woolf’s book Orlando, and Eugene O’Neill’s play Long Day’s Journey into Night.
进入美国公共领域的其他创意作品还包括查理·卓别林的电影《马戏团》、弗吉尼亚·吴尔夫的书《奥兰多》和尤金·奥尼尔的剧本《漫长的一天之夜》。
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Words in This Story
empire - n. a large group of businesses under the control of one person or company
authentic - adj. real, true and accurate
symbolic - adj. representing an idea or quality
expiration - n. the fact of coming to an end or no longer valid
