Why copyright?

Website content includes text, graphics, sound files, applets and other components, all of which probably cost a fair bit of money.

If you get your website components copyrighted, then you are protecting your investment and preventing others from stealing your product.

Don't forget, your website is a valuable part of your product and your company.

What can be stolen from your website?

Text can be stolen outright and reprinted without permission.  Graphics also.

Another part of the website that can be stolen is the code itself, especially nowadays with the competition for search engine placement.

Things like Keywords, Descriptions, Comments, Titles, Copyright notices, anything that is visible on the page, plus what is embedded in the page.

To view the hidden stuff, all the viewer has to do is select View Source in the browser and they can see much of the website content.

There are ways to protect some of the content, but they require somewhat more sophisticated methods than the basic website.

US Copyright

http://www.loc.gov/copyright/

Reference to US Copyright laws.

Canada Copyright

http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/C-42/

Reference to Canadian Copyright laws.