Copyright Dates
June 17, 2011
Attorneys, Copyright ©
When you see several dates in a copyright statement, it simply means that certain things were created in one year and modified later. It could also mean that new things were created and added in a later year.
It most definitely does not refer to the date that a copyright will expire. Expiration of a copyright actually takes place much later, and this period of validity begins from the date that you see in the copyright statement.
The Berne Convention establishes a general and minimum period that lasts the life of the author and fifty years after his (or her) death.
Recommend on Facebook- Share on Linkedin
- Tweet about it
- Buzz it up
- Print for later
- Tell a friend
Moral Rights in Copyright
April 7, 2011
Attorneys, Copyright ©
Moral rights refer to rights under copyright laws that protect the rights of the creators of the work. The moral rights fall within the scope of civil law and include rights such as the right to have a work published under a specific name or anonymous, and the right to have the integrity of the work protected.
Copyright awards two types of rights – that of economic and moral rights. An author for instance, has the right to gain an income from the work created while a moral right will include the right to be recognized as the author of the work. Transferring of the rights to a work doesn’t include the transfer of moral rights. The creators of original and copyright protected work thus retain their moral rights to the works.
Moral rights are protected under the Berne Convention of 1928. The USA though doesn’t recognize all the moral rights as set out in the Berne Convention. One of the most important moral rights is the right to prevent misattribution of a work. Another important moral right is the right to keep a work from being distorted or modified in such a manner that it harms the creator’s reputation.
Visual artists have moral rights in the USA under VARA, which stands for Visual Artists Rights Act giving them the right to authorship and the prevention of the use of the artist’s name on work not created by the artist, right to prevent the mutilation or changing of the work that would harm the artist’s reputation, and the right to prevent any form of destruction of an art work.
It is important to note that not all countries recognize the same moral rights in copyright. If you are an artist or author who wants to know your moral rights to a work, contact us at Smit & Van Wyk for an appointment.
- Recommend on Facebook
- Share on Linkedin
- Tweet about it
- Buzz it up
- Print for later
- Tell a friend
Copyright Myths Exposed
April 7, 2011
Attorneys, Copyright ©
In many instances copyright infringement takes place simply because of ignorance and misconceptions. A few guidelines are provided below to help you avoid copyright infringement.
Work On The Internet Is Copyright Protected
Make no mistake most works on the Internet are copyright protected. Only if a work falls within public domain, that is the copyright has expired, then can one freely copy or use the work, but it is still necessary to cite the source. Photos on the Internet, whether on Facebook or any other medium, are copyright protected. The moment an artistic or literary work is put into tangible form, it is automatically protected by copyright.
Works Without Copyright Notices Are Still Protected
Do not make the mistake of believing that if there is no copyright notice or symbol that the work falls within public domain. Most works which are in public domain can be found in special lists and databases on the Internet. Even if there is no copyright notice, you can assume that the work is protected.
If templates are available on the Internet with a specific requirement, you must follow the terms and conditions of usage. The templates may not have copyright notices, but the authors may require that you leave the link in place and notice of authorship. If you delete such you lose the right to usage.
Adapting A Piece Of Work Doesn’t Make The Work Yours
Article rewriting if done for your own website and from your own work or for the purpose of submitting to article directories is not copyright infringement. If, however, you find an article on the Internet and decide that you like it and change it a bit to pass the copy detection tools, you are still in violation of copyright. If you refer to another’s work, the source must be cited. If you adapt or copy an article from the Internet without permission from the author it stays copyright infringement. You can use a work as inspiration, but once you start writing make sure that you create original content.
Contact us at Smit & Van Wyk Intellectual Property Attorneys for assistance regarding copyright related issues.
Copyright Articles
- Copyright for Cinematographic Film
If you want to register copyright on a cinematograph film in South Africa, you will have to complete a copyright application… - Copyright Infringement on the Internet
Too many amateur photographers make the mistake of thinking that any photo they upload to the internet will automatically… - Software Copyright
Once the computer program is created in a material form, the work is instantly subject to copyright… - Copyright in South Africa
There are two principal international copyright conventions, the Berne Convention and the Universal Copyright… - Cinematographic Films Copyright Registration
The only form of copyright which can be registered in South Africa, is copyright in a cinematographic film… - USA Copyright Registrations
In the U.S copyright registrations can be filed through the United States Copyright… - Copyright Facts
The general rule is that the author / writer / photographer / creator is the first owner of copyright…
- Recommend on Facebook
- Share on Linkedin
- Tweet about it
- Buzz it up
- Print for later
- Tell a friend
Gauteng Copyright Lawyers
April 7, 2010
Copyright ©
Guidelines provided by Gauteng copyright lawyers
As part of our commitment to client service our team of Gauteng copyright lawyers also provide consultation services. General questions regarding copyright are answered at our blog, through articles at our website, and through full explanation pages.
If however, a client requires detailed information about a specific case, we recommend that you get in contact with the Smit & Van Wyk team of Gauteng copyright lawyers.
General information such as the right to assign copyrights to another party, how copyrights differ from that of trademarks and patents, and the lifespan of copyright on a work, are answered at our site.
Should you however, need assistance in reviewing an agreement or obtaining the royalties to your work, contact our experienced team of Gauteng copyright lawyers.
- Recommend on Facebook
- Share on Linkedin
- Tweet about it
- Buzz it up
- Print for later
- Tell a friend
Copyright Indemnity for Search Engines in the UK
February 3, 2010
Copyright ©
Amendments to a Bill in the UK seek to provide copyright indemnity for search engines.
The proposed amendment 292 of the Digital Economy Bill if accepted will allow for the copying of information in part or in whole from websites by the search engines as part of the purpose of providing search engine services. This means that search engines such as Google and Yahoo will be able to index parts of news publisher sites and that deep linking would not be a problem or risk of copyright infringement.
If approved by the House of Lords the amendments could also mean that publishers or website owners would not have the right to block search spiders through robots.txt files.
The outcome remains to be seen, but with such rights given to search engines, website owners will enjoy less copyright protection.
- Recommend on Facebook
- Share on Linkedin
- Tweet about it
- Buzz it up
- Print for later
- Tell a friend
