Sources of copyright Legislation
The first step is to understand where the legal regulation on copyright is derived from and it is the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA). It is the CDPA that is the main regulation for both copyright and also unregistered design rights.
The Objective behind the CDPA
This is to provide the owner of the copyright in a work the right to stop others from copying their work.
Different types of Work Guarded
An important point to notice is that only the subsequent categories are protected by copyright:
original literary works;
original dramatic works;
original musical works;
original artistic works;
films/sound recordings/broadcasts; and
typographical arrangements of published editions.
This is a closed list hence any works that are not included in any one of the categories will not be protected by copyright. For this reason it is very important to decide what (if any), category a given work falls within as the first task of addressing any issue on copy right.
When assessing any copyright matter it is necessary to consider that the work you are involved in must match certain criteria so as to enjoy copyright protection.
The criterion varies according to the category:
Some but not all works need to be fixed
In most cases the works have to be original.
It must qualify for protection under UK law.
Once it is established that a work is in line with the above mentioned criterion, the next step is always to rule out the chance of copyright expiration and then the final step along the way of establishing the subsistence of copyright, is to consider length of time.
Subsistence: Works and the Criteria for Protection
Work
The first thing to do when faced with a copyright matter would be to identify the "work" because without knowing what the work is you cant really assess the copyright. It is usual for a single work to consist of several different works.
Section.1(1) CDPAstipulates the works protected plus the sections following, case law and section 1(1). (up to s.8.) offers a bit of guidance on works mentioned in section 1(1).
The s. 3 definition includes computer software and databases. Examples of works which were held to be literary works are exam paperwork, application forms, calendars, catalogues and lists of football fixtures.
Database is defined within s. 3A: Note how wide the meaning is. It is the "selection or arrangement of the contents" of a database which counts as being a literary work, not its content, unless an item of content happens to qualify as a work in its own right. If the content does not comprise works, it may be protected by database right instead.
Dramatic works: s.1(1a) and section 3:
The dramatic works definition present in section 3(1): is more of a clarification that dance and mime fall into this category rather than a proper definition of dramatic works. However, using case law as a guide it can be deduced that dramatic works can be a "work of action, with or without words or music" which has to be performed for its total realisation, ergo it is capable of being performed when in front of an audience.
To illustrate this point remember that, the script for a play on its own can be explained as a literary work, however the production of that same play performed on stage will be a dramatic work.
Musical works: s. 1 (1)(a)and s. 3
An example of a musical work is the tune for a song (on the other hand,
note the lyrics are not inclusive, as these are a different literary work).
Artistic works: s. 1(1)(a) and section 4
The scope of artistic work in section s. 4(1) is fixed to the following 3 categories:
a) Section 4(1)(a): graphic works, photographs, sculptures and collages
Regardless of artistic deserve: graphic works, photographs, sculptures and collages all qualify as works. For instance diagrams, maps, charts and plans for example are graphic works,even if they have little if any artistic value and weren't intended to be artistic as at when created.
Photograph is defined by the CDPA to take into account new technologies as at when they develop.
There is not a definition for sculpture as such however there's a useful guide defining sculptures as a 3d work made by an artists hand
There cannot be any definition found for a collage however, in accordance with case law for a collage to exist it is required that all various elements be stuck with each other.
b) Section 4(1)(b): works of architecture (which include models)
Fixed structures, parts of fixed structures the models made for buildings prior to them been built are included in this category.
Yet architectural drawings are on their own protected as artistic works so a building produced by an architect, such as the Beetham Tower Manchester has multiple safeguards.
c) Section 4(1)(c): works of artistic craftsmanship
This category contains items including furniture, fine jewellery, ceramics and appliqud quilts.
It has been held that this type of work must:
have some visual appeal (be artistic); and
be made by way of a craftsperson(someone who exercises skill for making it and takes pride in his workmanship).
Sound recordings, films and broadcasts: ss. 5A, 5B and 6
These are occasionally referred to as secondary works as there will be at least one main literary, dramatic or musical work. For example ,a physical object will frequently contain multiple works, e. g. a CD (sound recording) of a symphony (musical work).
The typographical arrangement of published editions: s. 1(1)(c) and s. 8
This can be defined as the layout and typesetting of a book, newspaper, journal etc. which qualifies as a published edition of (a brand new edition of a book isn't created by just just reprinting that same book. It is important to note that the typographical arrangement is a work in its own right, distinguished from the underlying literary work.
This can be explained by comparing two different editions of the same classic novel close examination will identify many differences in details like the physical appearance of the text on the page page size, margins, paragraph spacing, typeface, type size, placement of page numbers, headers etc.
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