ASSIGNMENT

Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988

Table of Contents

Introduction3

Findings3

Conclusions7

Recommendations7

References9

Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988

Introduction

In the UK, copyright exists automatically in all original works and are protected by the 'Copyright, Design & Patents Act, 1988'. Copyright does not have to be registered, but is automatically assigned the moment the material is created, published, recorded or, if the creator is unknown, released or publicly displayed. The Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988 came into force on 1 August 1989. UCL has entered into licence agreements with the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd (CLA), The Newspaper Licensing Agency Ltd (NLA), the Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS) and the Educational Recording Agency Limited (ERA). The CLA copying licence allows all members of UCL staff and students to take copies of books, journals, periodicals and magazines for educational purposes within clearly defined limits. Details of which printed matter and the defined limits are to be found next to each photocopier in UCL. The ERA licence allows recording and re-recording of all broadcast or cable programmes for educational purposes. Excepted from the licence are Open University and Open College programmes. The recording of these programmes has to be authorised by the Audiovisual Centre (Media Resources) who will make a charge on behalf of Open University Enterprises Ltd. The NLA licence allows the photocopying by a higher educational establishment of articles in newspapers.

Findings

The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, is the current UK copyright law. It gives the creators of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works the right to control the ways in which their material may be used. The rights cover: Broadcast and public performance, copying, adapting, issuing, renting and lending copies to the public. In many cases, the creator will also have the right to be identified as the author and to object to distortions of his work.

Copyright arises when an individual or organisation creates a work, and applies to a work if it is regarded as original, and exhibits a degree of labour, skill or judgement.

Interpretation is related to the independent creation rather than the idea behind the creation. For example, your idea for a book would not itself be protected, but the actual content of a book you write would be. In other words, someone else is still entitled to write their own book around the same idea, provided they do not directly copy or adapt yours to do so.

Names, titles, short phrases and colours are not generally considered unique or substantial enough to be covered, but a creation, such as a logo, that combines these elements may be.

Normally the individual or collective who authored the work will exclusively own the rights. However, if a work is produced as part of employment then normally the work belongs to the person/company who hired the individual. For freelance or commissioned work, rights will usually belong to the author of the work, unless there is an agreement to the contrary, (i.e. in a contract for ...