"Jon J. Yeager" wrote in message ...
This question must get asked a lot - and I apologize if it's in any sort of
FAQ I haven't seen - but how does an unpublished Canadian artist copyright
songs before putting them online or sending out demos... other than the
traditional registered timestamped snail-mail method?

Is there a "copyright office" that keeps a record of songs? Especially now
that they can easily be kept digitally via mp3 and don't take up any
physical space.

Calls to Canada Copyrights didn't lead to anything tangible, and I'm waiting
to hear back from the SOCAN.

Thanks for any information you can provide.

One thing that will help you understand copyright is that the word
copyright is a noun not a verb. You can't ever copyright something.
You register the copyright. The moment you author the work, whether
it's a song or a recording or somehting else, you hold/own the
copyright. You can even use the C in a circle and the year.

Copyright disputes are settled with proof. A copyright registration
isn't proof, but it is something you should do before you publish your
work.