5.3 Legislation relating to the use of ICT for storage, manipulation and access of information

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Data Protection Act
3. Copyright legislation
   1. Ownership and duration of copyright
   2. Copyright and the Internet
   3. Digital Rights Management (DRM)
   4. Digital watermarking
4. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

Ownership and duration of copyright

The author is the first owner of copyright in a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work. In the case of films, the principal director and the film producer are joint authors and first owners of copyright. The main exception is where a work or film is made in the course of employment, in which case the employer owns the copyright. The copyright in sound recordings, broadcasts and published editions generally belongs to the record producer, broadcaster or publisher.

Copyright protection in the UK is automatic and there is no registration system - so there are no forms to fill in and no fees to pay.

Copyright is a form of intellectual property and, like physical property, can be bought and sold, inherited or otherwise transferred. A transfer of ownership may cover all or only some of the rights to which a copyright owner is entitled. First or subsequent copyright owners can choose to license others to use their works whilst retaining ownership themselves.

Copyright in a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (including a photograph) lasts until 70 years after the death of the author. The duration of copyright in a film is 70 years after the death of the last to survive of the principal director, the authors of the screenplay and dialogue, and the composer of any music specially created for the film. Sound recordings are generally protected for 50 years from the year of publication. Broadcasts are protected for 50 years and published editions are protected for 25 years.

The following are useful websites providing information on copyright:

Let's look now at Copyright and the Internet ...