Expiring Soon©

The 1928 “Steamboat Willie” version of Mickey Mouse is set to enter the public domain in 2023 after its 95-year copyright protection expires, a timeframe that Disney itself helped reform through Congress over the decades to extend the protection of one of its most iconic images. Plenty of companies are eagerly awaiting the expiration to pounce on using it. This follows on the news that the original Winnie The Pooh and Bambi drawings have also entered the public domain, which makes them freely available to copy and adapt.