Original work. Copyright protects what are known as “works of literature, science or art”. This covers a wide range of intangible assets in which ideas, knowledge, information or data are given form or presented. This can range from texts, music and graphic or visual art to industrial design, computer programmes and databases. Whilst patent law protects the technical application of ideas, knowledge, information or data, copyright protects their form. The ideas, knowledge, information and data expressed in a work are not protected by copyright and remain freely usable. To qualify for copyright protection, the expression of ideas, knowledge, information and data must be sufficiently ‘original’ to be described as an “original intellectual creation of the author”. In practice, this threshold is often lower than the layperson might expect.
Protection. Copyright protection extends to the publication, reproduction, distribution or public performance of the work and, in particular, to all adaptations thereof. Copyright thus also offers protection against translations, film adaptations or other forms of expression in which the author’s original work remains recognisable.
Origin. Copyright arises automatically upon the mere creation of the work, without any registration being required. Nor is the use of the so-called copyright notice – © – necessary.
Duration. Copyright lasts for 70 years. Where the original author or rights holder is a natural person, this period runs for 70 years after their death.