COPYRIGHT

WHAT IS COPYRIGHT?

Copyright is a law that gives you ownership over the things you create. For example : a painting, a photograph, a poem or a novel. if you created it, you own it and the copyright law itself t assures that ownership.

The ownership that copyright law grants comes with several rights that you, as the owner, have exclusively. Those rights include: The right to reproduce the work to prepare derivative works to distribute copies to perform the work and to display the work publicly

Benefits of Copyright Protection Copyright protection provides a vital incentive for the creation of many intellectual works. Without copyright protection, it would be easy for others to exploit these works without paying any royalties or remuneration to the owner of the work. Copyright therefore encourages enterprise and creates a favourable climate to stimulate economic activity.

•Copyright protection provides benefits in the form of economic rights which entitle the creators to control use of their literary and artistic material in a number of ways such as making copies, performing in public, broadcasting, use on-line, etc.

•Copyright also gives moral rights to be identified as the creator or author of certain kinds of material (known as the paternity right), and object to the distortion and mutilation of it.

WHAT ARE THE USES OF COPYRIGHT

A Copyright is a form of intellectual property law that provides protection for original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works. Copyrights protect poems, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture.

Copyright protection is available to both published and unpublished works.

WHAT ARE THE USES OF COPYRIGHT

Copyright protection does not protect the same things as a patent or trademark would. Copyright protection does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed.

Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form so that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.

WHAT ARE THE USES OF COPYRIGHT Cont’d

Copyright protection apply to any works 'whether or not' the materials are officially copyrighted (registered)

Registering copyrights with the U.S. Copyright Office will help if there is a legal dispute.

Copyright Notice

Use of the copyright notice may be important because it informs the public that the work is protected by copyright, identifies the copyright owner, and shows the year of first publication.

The use of the copyright notice is the responsibility of the copyright owner and does not require advance permission from, or registration with, the Copyright Office.

What is copyright infringement?Copyright infringement occurs when someone other than the copyright holder copies the “expression” of a work. Copyright infringement can occur even if someone does not copy a work exactly. Copyright infringement occurs if the infringing work is “substantially similar” to the copyrighted work.

COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT - THE EXCEPTIONS

• There are three exceptions to the copyright infringement rules:

• Fair Use - permits the reproduction of copyrighted material for a limited purpose of teaching, reviewing, literary criticism and the like.

COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT - THE EXCEPTIONS CONT’D

• Public Domain - This refers to works which are no longer covered by copyright law.

•Non-Copyrightable Works - Copyright infringement cannot occur when someone uses material that cannot be protected by copyright, such as facts or ideas.

WHAT IS NOT PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT?Names and titles are not protected by copyright law. Neither are works in progress, improvised speeches, works derived from common knowledge, and performances that are not written or recorded. You can copyright your website, but not your domain name.

Norton, K., N.d. Types of Copyright. eHow Money.com. Retrieved March 1, 2013, from http://www.ehow.com/about_5518447_types-copyright-law.html

Bailey, J., April 11, 2012. The 3 Types of Copyright Conversations. PlagiarismToday. Retrieved March 1, 2013, from http://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2012/04/11/types-of-copyright-conversation/

Bellis, M., n.d. How to Understand and use Copyright Protection. About.com. Retrieved March 1, 2013, from http://inventors.about.com/cs/copyrights/ht/Use_Copyrights.htm

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