How Can Copyright Protect My Business in England?

If you have a work in your business that needs to be legally protected, you may be interested in learning how copyright law can help. This article will detail how copyright can protect your business in England and inform you of your current rights and entitlements for any work you create now or in the future.

What is Copyright?

Copyright is an economic right. It is one of the principal types of intellectual property protection in England and provides you, the author, with protection against someone using your work without your permission. When you create a work, you can enforce copyright law automatically.

Copyright ownership is most commonly seen among the following:

• writers;
• computer engineers;
• website developers; and 
• other artistic creators.

Copyright can protect your business against any form of reproduction of the work without permission. It can be joint if there is a co-authorship element in the original piece of work. This is useful for creators who wish to collaborate on a work.

How Do I Copyright My Work?

You may be concerned about how to go about copyrighting your creations if you have, for example:

• written a book;
• created a new piece of software;
• recorded new music; or 
• created illustrations or photography. 

In England, copyright applies automatically. In contrast to other types of intellectual property, it does not need to be:

• registered;
• applied for; or 
• have any fee paid to an organisation. 

To show your work is copyrighted, you can put the symbol © or ‘all rights reserved’ to highlight that the work is copyrighted. However, if you do not do this, it will not impact how copyright protects your business. Still, it is advisable to mark any of your own work with the copyright symbol, your name and also the year you created the work. 

There is no register of copyright works in England which contrasts with other types of intellectual property like patents or trade marks. Many countries permit copyright to enforce automatically. However, you should check this if you are concerned about a particular jurisdiction.

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How Long Does Copyright Protection Last?

The protection that copyright enforces lasts the entirety of an author’s life with an additional 70 years for:

• software;
• literary work;
• dramatic work;
• musicals; or
• artistic works. 

Licensing and Selling Your Copyright 

If you own the copyright to a literary work, you can license the use of it. You can limit the use in any way and dictate how others can use your work. This often happens when films use musical works. You should, however, draw up a contract for this type of transaction to ensure others handle your work in the exact way you wish.

You can also easily transfer your copyright and sell it for a financial value. However, you will need to sign a document to show that the sale has taken place and name the new owner of the copyright.

Moral Rights and Copyright

Moral rights and copyright are linked but are distinct in character. They are only available for musical, artistic, literary and performative pieces of work. The easiest way to distinguish moral rights and copyright is that moral rights are noneconomic rights. There are four moral rights in England:

• right of attribution;
• right to object to derogatory treatment of the work;
• right to object to false attribution; and 
• right of privacy in films and photographs.

Moral rights can not be transferred to another person as they are concerned with the creator, and creators can waive them if they wish to do so. The right of attribution is to be identified as the author of the creative work. The right to object to derogatory treatment of the work protects the work from being misused or misrepresented in the eyes of the author. This is known as the right of integrity.

The right to object to false attribution means that the author can stop someone else from being wrongly credited for their work. Finally, the right of privacy in films and photographs enables the author to have privacy in any photographs or films they commission.

What if Someone Uses My Work Without Permission?

There are occasions where people may be able to use your work without permission, such as for:

• private study and research;
• teaching in academic settings;
• assisting people with disabilities; and
• utilising the work for later reporting or reviews of current events

However, if you feel that someone has used your work and does not fall into these categories, you are responsible for bringing your legal dispute under copyright infringement. You will need to contact the Copyright Tribunal and request a decision on your copyright dispute. You should check the licences register to check if anyone is attempting to apply to licence your work, and if so, you can apply to have this application stopped.

Key Takeaways

Copyright is an automatic right in England for literary, dramatic, musical and other creative works without the need to register or pay a fee. It can be joint if there are several collaborators within one work, as is often the case in creative fields. Your piece of work will also have moral rights automatically attributed to it. These are noneconomic rights and protect the integrity and misuse of your work. Copyright requires you to take action if you suspect infringement, and as such, you should utilise the copyright symbol to deter businesses from copying or using your work without permission.

If you need help with protecting your business through copyright, our experienced intellectual property lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today at 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.

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