Copyright

Copyright is a right to prevent copying. Copyright arises automatically and protects artistic output. It prevents unauthorised copying of a work for the lifetime of the author of the work, and for 70 years after that author's death. However, the Copyright protection for artistic items which are mass produced is restricted to 25 years.

To receive Copyright protection, a work must be "original" i.e. not copied from another work.

Although there is no need to undertake any registration process in order to secure Copyright protection, in order to proceed against an infringing party it will be necessary for a Copyright owner to show that their work was created prior to the work they allege infringes their Copyright. Accordingly, it is necessary to establish the date of origin of their work. Common ways to achieve this are to e-mail illustrations to oneself or to lodge the same with a body such as the United Kingdom Copyright Service.

The laws relating to Copyright can offer wide ranging protection for those engaged in all types of business. For example, it can protect:-

1. the artistic output of designers and photographers;
2. advertising and branding material;  and
3. coding developed by software and website developers.

Ownership of Copyrighted works can often be contentious. The author of the work is prima facie the owner of the Copyright subsisting in a work. By way of example, if one party commissions a work, even though they have paid for that work the Copyright in the same would vest in the author. As such, the Copyright subsisting within the work would need to be assigned to the commissioning party by way of a Copyright Assignment Agreement in order to legally vest ownership of the Copyright in them.

A Database right also exists to protect databases and compilations of information, and is in many senses similar to Copyright.

For more information and help on any of these topics please contact our Business Services Team on 01908 660966 or fill out our online contact form.