“Yes, Steamboat Willie is finally entering the public domain. Welcome, Mickey and Minnie Mouse!” shared Jennifer Jenkins, Law Professor and Director of the Center for the Study of the Public Domain at Duke University. With several firm provisions in place, the earliest form of Mickey and Minnie Mouse will be become part become public domain in 2024.
In a moment many thought might never come, the iconic American pop culture rodent couple, will be free from Disney’s copyright grasp, and people can use their likelihoods anyway they like. The legendary figures have had many iterations over the years, so it’s not the current versions being released; but the 1928 short “Steamboat Willie,” featuring both Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
Although a huge figure, Mickey Mouse isn’t the first notable character to enter the public domain, nor will it be the last. In 2023, Sherlock Holmes became available, as did the Hardy Boys. 2022’s public domain addition of Winnie-the-Pooh ended up making a huge splash.
As shared by Professor Stacey Lee at Johns Hopkins University, “For longstanding media companies, like Disney and Warner Bros, managing copyrights and preserving the rights to intellectual properties worth billions will continue to be a challenge.”
According to Lee, Disney still has a lot of options to protect its intellectual property rights to Mickey Mouse. “For one, only the earliest version of Mickey Mouse appearing in Steamboat Willie will be entering the public domain.” Lee points out that the image of Mickey from Steamboat Willie is very different from the today’s Mickey Mouse, who is much more modern with larger ears, pupils and red shorts.
Disney still holds the rights and associated registered trademarks to all of these recent iterations of Mickey Mouse, including the Mickey Mouse ears which are used in the Disney logo. These measures help cement Disney’s iconic association with the character.
It’s certainly an interesting time for would-be creators, as over the next few years, franchise-leading characters, such as James Bond, Batman Superman, Donald Duck, and the book The Hobbit, are all heading for the public domain.
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