Set the origin date once and forget it.
import os
import sys
import subprocess
+import datetime
if 'check_output' not in dir(subprocess):
import subprocess32 as subprocess
@@ -22,7 +23,10 @@ dist_info_cmd = [sys.executable, setup_script] + fields
output_bytes = subprocess.check_output(dist_info_cmd, cwd=root)
project, version, url, author = output_bytes.decode('utf-8').strip().split('\n')
-copyright = '2016 ' + author
+origin_date = datetime.date(2017,1,1)
+today = datetime.date.today()
+
+copyright = '{origin_date.year}-{today.year} {author}'.format(**locals())
# The full version, including alpha/beta/rc tags.
release = version
