Okay, the longer explanation.
It's quite common for a publishing contract (with a real publisher) to run as long as the publisher keeps the book in print. That could, conceivably, be for the life of copyright (or even longer).*
That would require that the publisher keep the work in print, and in order to keep the work in print the publisher would have to
keep selling copies. If they weren't selling copies, they'd let the book go out of print, and (in accordance with the contract (where reversion is spelled out in painful detail)), the work would revert to the author.
In practical terms, that meant three to five years.
So,
if you had a perennial seller, the publisher could
conceivably keep the publishing rights for the full term of copyright. This would mean that both the publisher and the author
would continue to sell books and make money for that entire period. Why an author would want to take back his or her rights in that happy condition is a mystery to me. It also gives the publisher
an incentive to promote and distribute and sell the book.
Since POD has arrived, and some deep-backlist books** have gone to POD sales (where the publisher will print a copy if someone wants one), the contracts have evolved so that a book will revert if, in a (specified) period the publisher sells fewer than a (specified) number.
Please note that in all these cases it is the publisher's responsibility to sell the book if that publisher wants to keep the right to keep on selling it. Else the book reverts, the author can resell it to another publisher, and the world continues to turn.
A reversion clause:
12. REVERSION AND TERMINATION
(a) In the event that the Publisher's edition of the Work shall
at any time be out of print, the Author or his representative may
give notice thereof to the Publisher, and in such event the
Publisher shall declare within thirty (30) days in writing
whether or not he intends to bring out a new edition of the Work;
if he shall declare his intention to bring out such new edition
then such edition shall be published not later than six (6)
months from the date of said declaration; however, if he declares
his intention not to bring out a new printing of the Work, then
this agreement shall automatically terminate and all rights
hereunder shall revert to the Author. At any time after two
years from the date of first publication, but not before, the
Publisher may on three months' notice in writing to the Author or
his representative discontinue publication, and in that event
this agreement shall terminate and all rights hereunder shall
revert to the Author at the expiration of said three (3) month
period.
(b) If the Publisher shall, during the existence of this
agreement, default in the delivery of semiannual statements or
in the making of payments as herein provided and shall neglect or
refuse to deliver such statements or make such payments, or any
of them, within thirty (30) days after written notice of such
default, this agreement shall terminate at the expiration of such
thirty (30) days without prejudice to the Author's claim for any
monies which may have accrued under this agreement or to any
other rights and remedies to which the Author may be entitled.
(c) If the Publisher shall fail to publish the Work within the
period in Paragraph 4 provided, or otherwise fail to comply with
or fulfill the terms and conditions hereof, or in the event of
bankruptcy, etc., as in Paragraph 13 hereof provided, this
agreement shall terminate and the rights herein granted to the
Publisher shall revert to the Author. In such event all payments
theretofore made to the Author shall belong to the Author without
prejudice to any other remedies which the Author may have.
(d) Upon the termination of this agreement for any cause under
this Article or Article 13 hereof, all rights granted to the
Publisher shall revert to the Author for his use at any time and
the Publisher shall return to the Author all property originally
furnished by the Author; the Author shall have the right in such
instance to purchase the plates from the Publisher at their metal
value, and any or all of the remaining sheets or copies at a
price not to exceed fifty percent (50%) of the manufacturing
cost, exclusive of overhead. If the Author shall not have
acquired such plates, sheets or copies within ___ days of the
effective date of such termination, the Publisher shall have the
right to sell such remaining copies at cost or less, without
payment to the Author of royalties on such sales. If the
Publisher shall desire to melt such plates, he shall give the
Author days notice in writing thereof and an opportunity to
acquire such plates as above provided. No such sale by the
Publisher shall transfer the right of publication and sale of the
Work to any purchaser of the remaining copies or sheets. The
Publisher's privilege to sell the remaining copies shall expire
six (6) months after the effective termination date and thereupon
all remaining copies shall be destroyed. In the event that the
parties shall have agreed to the taking of the copyright in the
name of the Publisher, then the Publisher shall, upon such
termination, furnish the Author an assignment of such copyright
to him in due for recording.
(e) The Work shall be considered in print so long as the total
print Run minus total sales of all kinds, total destroyed copies,
and total promotional copies distributed shall exceed 250 copies
of the Work.
* Note that after copyright runs out the work goes into public domain. While the original publisher could still keep publishing the book, so could anyone else.
** For an example,
this book (an anthology from Time-Warner, a 256-page trade paperback listing for $15.99) is currently available as a backlist title and is printed on demand. (I chose this one since it has a story by me in it. I rather enjoy getting continuing royalties. I am by no means opposed to or unhappy with POD as a business model, or digital printing as a technology. I do, however, object strenuously to false and misleading advertising, such as that perpetrated by PublishAmerica.)
