Early Steamboat Willie version of Mickey Mouse released from Disney’s copyright
The original depiction of the Mickey Mouse cartoon enters the public domain | Individuals can adapt and build upon the original character but restrictions apply to later versions.
After almost 100 years, the original version of Mickey Mouse is no longer under Disney's copyright.
The famous cartoon character, which first featured in the animation film Steamboat Willie and a silent version of Plane Crazy in 1928, entered the public domain in the US yesterday, January 1, 2024.
This public domain version also includes an early version of Minnie Mouse.
Individuals are now free to copy, share, and build on the original Mickey character, but not incarnations that include certain, later, design changes, such as the one depicted in Fantasia (1940), for instance.
In addition, they can't use Mickey in a way that misleads consumers into thinking their work is produced or sponsored by Disney or use new copyrighted versions of Mickey.
Disney still retains copyright over newer iterations of Mickey as well as trademarks covering the character.
Mickey Mouse now joins other familiar public domain characters—Winnie the Pooh, Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, Robin Hood, Snow White, Cinderella, and Alice in Wonderland.
A complicated relationship
This marks a highly anticipated event due to the complex legal history involving the iconic character over the years.
Jennifer Jenkins, director at the Duke Center for the Study of the Public Domain, explained in an article posted on the centre’s website that: “This event gathers so much attention [because] it is the story of a 95-year-old love triangle between Mickey, Disney and the public domain.”
She described Disney’s “erosion of the public domain” as “one of the strongest use-cases in favour of the maintenance of a rich public domain”.
Disney lobbied for the extension of copyright from to 95 years, but these efforts were criticised for being economically unfair, and as an attempt to curb access to culturally important works.
Despite this criticism the “Mickey Mouse Protection Act”, passed in 1998 because of significant lobbying efforts on behalf of the entertainment conglomerate.
Mickey Mouse himself is based on public domain elements, argued Jenkins, as his creators were inspired by the characteristics of silent film stars such as Charlie Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks.
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