Unfortunately for the photographer here , copyright ownership does not work the way ownership does on the farm . Danny Cevallos : Photog whose camera used in viral monkey selfie wants it off Wikipedia . It is uncopyrightable , says Wikipedia because animals ca n't own it . But do they ? U.S. copyright law holds photo must be in tangible medium , be original and have author . Cevallos : Animals are n't authors . This selfie does n't qualify for copyright protection .
Danny Cevallos : Photog whose camera used in viral monkey selfie wants it off Wikipedia . It is uncopyrightable , says Wikipedia because animals ca n't own it . But do they ? U.S. copyright law holds photo must be in tangible medium , be original and have author . Cevallos : Animals are n't authors . This selfie does n't qualify for copyright protection .