How long can a copyright last according to the Copyright Act of 1976, with a potential extension?

The duration of copyright protection under the Copyright Act of 1976 is indeed significant, as it originally provided for a term of the author's life plus 50 years, which has been extended through subsequent legislation. Specifically, any work created after January 1, 1978, is granted copyright protection for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years. In cases where the work has corporate authorship or is a work for hire, the copyright term is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.

The first option reflects a misunderstanding as the original terms of 28 years plus a renewal of 28 years applied to works created before 1978. Thus, while this option may reference an earlier law, it does not apply to the current standards implemented by the 1976 act as amended.

With the understanding of the correct duration of modern copyright law, the other choices do not align with current copyright durations as they provide either too short a time frame or incorrect accumulations of possible extensions. The correct duration information is foundational for understanding how copyright protection functions and evolves based on legislative adjustments and the intent behind protecting creativity and intellectual property rights.