Batman v Superman v Copyright v Trademark: The Future of the Public Domain & Source Identification

Listed among the characters whose copyrights will also lapse in the next 10-15 years are many well-known superheroes that have captured the world’s attention for the past century.⁴ It is these characters that will be the focus of this article. They include: Superman (2033), Batman (2034), Namor (2034), The Human Torch⁵ (2034), Captain Marvel⁶ (2034), The Flash⁷ (2035), Green Lantern⁸ (2035), Captain America (2036), Aquaman (2036), and Wonder Woman (2036).⁹ Quite an array of characters to be sure. A quick observation will show that DC is far more affected by this round of copyright expirations,¹⁰ but Marvel will find themselves in a similar situation in the not-so-far future of the late 2050s when characters entering the public domain will include the Fantastic Four, The Hulk, Spider-man, Thor, Iron Man, Dr. Strange, The X-men, and Daredevil.¹¹

The earnings of these characters is an instructive tool to understand how “some properties have values that can’t easily be duplicated.”¹² Starting with those that are already publicly available, Winnie the Pooh has netted approximately $48 billion and Mickey Mouse and Friends has made a staggering $52 billion.¹³ Turning to superheroes, Batman has earned approximately $29 billion and Superman an impressive $7 billion.¹⁴ Further, while the other listed superheroes soon to enter the public domain have not approached these numbers (although they have certainly still made money), they all contribute to both DC and Marvel’s immensely successful movies,¹⁵ television shows, comic books, and merchandise.¹⁶ Although these are rough estimates, it is clear that superheroes have evolved well beyond the “silly pictures” that some in the legal world once thought of them as.¹⁷