Some Brief Notes on Copyright

The law governing copyright in the UK is the 1988 Copyright, Design and Patents Act (CDPA). Copyright gives legal rights to the creators of certain kinds of material, in order that they can control the ways in which their work may be exploited. Copyright protection is automatic and there is no registration or other procedure to follow (in the UK). Copyright automatically comes into existence as soon as an original work is recorded in some material form. Copyright is a property right. This means it can be exploited, bought, sold, bequeathed, rented or licensed just like any other property.

Basic points about copyright

In broad terms, anything which is printed, written, made or recorded in any form (e.g. academic publications or computer software) is subject to copyright. Copyright exists whether or not it is asserted using the © symbol or otherwise.

What does it mean?

to copy the work
to issue copies of the work to the public
to perform, show or play the work to the public
to broadcast the work
to make an adaptation of the work.

Who owns the copyright?

The initial owner of the copyright in a literary (including all written material), dramatic, musical or artistic work is the author or creator, unless the work was done in the course of employment in which case the employer owns the copyright unless a contract specifies otherwise.

Copyright can be assigned to another party: in many cases the author of a published journal article does not hold the copyright but has assigned it to the publisher. On the author/creator’s death, copyright is passed on as part of their property.

How long does copyright last?

Copyright in literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works lasts until 70 years after the death of the author/creator. Typographical copyright in the printed page lasts for 25 years from publication in that edition, so a recent edition of a long-dead author cannot be freely copied. The Patent Office produce more detailed information on duration of copyright, "How long does copyright last?":
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/types/copy/c-duration.htm

What can I legally copy or use?

Reproduction of copyright material is permitted in certain limited circumstances:

By Permission: the rights-owner can give permission, with or without a fee, for any action of which they hold the rights.
Fair Dealing: “Fair Dealing” allows a certain amount of copying for purposes of “research or private study”, generally taken to be limited to:
- one article from any one issue of a journal (even if that one article is the whole issue)
- one chapter or up to 5% (whichever is the greater) of a book or similar publication
- one poem or short story of up to 10 pages from an anthology, or the report of one case in law reports
This is not the case if the purpose of the copying is a commercial one.

Fair dealing for “criticism or review” allows copying within a generally accepted limit of 400 words in one extract, or several extracts of less than 300 words totalling less than 800 words.
Educational purposes: Copying is allowed for the purposes of examination, though the material must not be included if the exam papers are subsequently published.