If I understand correctly, the King James Version of the Bible is copyrighted in the UK but nowhere else. I live in the US. If I upload a copy of it to my Web site (which is hosted in the US), is that legal? Can I travel to the UK?
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Why was this downvoted? Is there something I could fix?– SomeoneCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 5:43
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Why do you think there is a copyright issue in the UK?– George WhiteCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 7:17
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@GeorgeWhite King James gave certain people permission to publish the Bible because he didn't want (possibly seditions) unofficial translations around. The Crown has never changed its mind and said that anyone can now print the KJV. Technically it's a patent, not a copyright.– richardbCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 7:33
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Please could you define "KJV" in the question, for the benefit of anyone who doesn't know what it means.– Steve MelnikoffCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 10:34
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There is insufficient information in the question to determine your capability for travel.– Michael HallCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 13:59
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1 Answer
According to the page "Rights and Permissions: KJV" from Cambridge University:
Rights in The Authorized Version of the Bible (King James Bible) in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown and administered by the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press. The reproduction by any means of the text of the King James Version is permitted to a maximum of five hundred (500) verses for liturgical and non-commercial educational use, provided that the verses quoted neither amount to a complete book of the Bible nor represent 25 per cent or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted, subject to the following acknowledgement being included:
Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press
When quotations from the KJV text are used in materials not being made available for sale, such as church bulletins, orders of service, posters, presentation materials, or similar media, a complete copyright notice is not required but the initials KJV must appear at the end of the quotation.
That copyright protection does not apply in the US, nor in any place ouside the UK (or possibly the British Commonwealth).
If a person resident in the US uploads a copy of the KJV to a site hosted in the US, no US copyright has been infringed, nor has any US law has been broken.
If the site is accessible from the UK, a suit could be brought under UK law for infringement of Crown Copyright. (Whether the relevant UK authorities would choose to bring such a suit I cannot say.) If there was a judgement for the plaintiff, any property that the defendant (the uploader) has in the UK could be subject to seizure for pay the judgement. The UK court could ask a US court to enforce the judgement, but in this case I am fairly sure the US court would refuse, because of the First Amendment.
The up loader would not be subject to arrest in the UK, because this is not a criminal matter. But if the uploader brought any property into the UK, it might be subject to seizure to pay the existing judgement.
To respond to a question in the comments, the KJV is not protected by ordinary copyright law, but by a Royal Prerogative Monopoly, a relic of the period when the Crown licensed all printing and distribution of religious works. See "A Four Century Copyright: Free the King James!" and sources linked from that page.
answered Jul 17, 2022 at 7:38
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Thank you! I do plan to travel to the UK at some point in the future. Perhaps I should contact Cambridge and request a license, so my site is legal worldwide?– SomeoneCommented Jul 17, 2022 at 8:05
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@Simeone That is up to you, I cannot give advice there. I do not know how vigorously that copyright is enforced, nor how the people at Cambridge might learn that you were the person who put up such a site, or that you were in the UK, nor what collection options they might have available. Commented Jul 17, 2022 at 8:16
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I'm surprised it hasn't entered into the Public Domain by now. What's the term limit for that in the UK? Commented Jul 17, 2022 at 10:30
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1“I'm surprised it hasn't entered into the Public Domain by now.” +1. Seems pretty unbiblical of them…. WWJD? Commented Jul 17, 2022 at 13:58
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1@nick012000 It isn't an ordinary copyright, and will not expire unless UK law is changed. See the recent edit to my answer. Commented Jul 17, 2022 at 15:39