Yes.
Although many countries have not signed the Berne Convention, the World Trade Organisation’s TRIPS agreement includes the Berne Convention by reference, and almost every country is subject to one or the other.
There may be a very few countries that are outside both Berne and TRIPS but there is a good chance that they will have their own copyright laws. Whether they are in Berne or TRIPS or not, it is always the local laws that you will be using; those agreements only describe what those local laws should look like in broad brush strokes. All the local laws differ from one another. That’s wh
Yes.
Although many countries have not signed the Berne Convention, the World Trade Organisation’s TRIPS agreement includes the Berne Convention by reference, and almost every country is subject to one or the other.
There may be a very few countries that are outside both Berne and TRIPS but there is a good chance that they will have their own copyright laws. Whether they are in Berne or TRIPS or not, it is always the local laws that you will be using; those agreements only describe what those local laws should look like in broad brush strokes. All the local laws differ from one another. That’s why Winnie the Pooh is copyright free in the USA but still protected in Europe.
This is a tough issue. Talk to an international copyright lawyer if it’s important to you. Find out if the offending country has any copyright laws of its own that they might be willing to enforce. If they don’t, and you are in the US, you might be stuck trying to get the State Department to raise your issue with the offending country, or, maybe you can hire a lawyer in the offending country to try to put pressure on the offenders.
Doesn’t sound hopeful to me. Presumably not worth fussing about unless there is a lot of money involved.
Almost all countries have signed and ratified one or more of the current 7 multilateral international copyright treaties. (All managed by WIPO.)
So, yes, as of January 2022 you’d have legal recourse to pursue copyright infringement in all but the following countries: Eritrea, Marshal Islands, Nauru, Palau, and the WTO Observer countries: Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, South Sudan and Timor-Leste, since they are not party to any copyright conventions.
Yes. Almost ever country has some sort of copyright law, and one can pursue a case in whatever way that law permits.
Most countries that are not members of Berne have signed the WTO’s TRIPS agreement (Trad-related Intellectual Property). This imposes most of the non-organizational rules from Berne. It is required for membership in the World Trade Organization. This, like Berne, allows a foreign national to sue on at elast the same basis as a local citizen.
There are other copyright treaties that countries that didn’t sign the Berne Convention signed.
But even in countries that signed the Berne convention, this is an uphill battle. The convention means that you are treated the same in all countries but doesn’t give you any additional rights.
You would have to hire a lawyer in the country where you want to take action and follow the laws of the country in question which may be different than the laws of the country you live in and they may not work to your benefit
Yes. This is essentially the basis of the Berne Convention which was created in 1986 and today has 176 signatory countries.
In fact, you must use the provisions that the foreign country offers its local to enforce your copyrights. The US, as one, has some very rare exceptions where an American might be able to bring suit in the US and not in a foreign country, but these are rare and specific. I do not know (and as IANAL) for other countries.
Each signatory pledges to treat valid foreign copyrights the same as local copyrights. They are considered valid if valid in the holder’s home country and t
Yes. This is essentially the basis of the Berne Convention which was created in 1986 and today has 176 signatory countries.
In fact, you must use the provisions that the foreign country offers its local to enforce your copyrights. The US, as one, has some very rare exceptions where an American might be able to bring suit in the US and not in a foreign country, but these are rare and specific. I do not know (and as IANAL) for other countries.
Each signatory pledges to treat valid foreign copyrights the same as local copyrights. They are considered valid if valid in the holder’s home country and they’re offered the same remediations for infringement as are available to natives of that country. If this involves the foreign country’s court system, you can access the court system. Of course, you most likely will need to hire a local lawyer who knows the courts and laws and might have to travel there. The Convention doesn’t offer any special solutions beyond the foreign country allowing you access to whatever provisions they offer.
It remains up to you to pursue copyright infringement at your expense. This is one of the key advantages of a traditional publisher over self-publishing, in that the publisher has incentive to pursue copyright infringement on your behalf (you, the author, continue to own the copyrights), since they’re losing sales. If self-published, it’s wholly up to you at your expense.
Which means you may not have the financial wherewithal to pursue legal action. However, most sites that host content are supposed to provide remedies around copyright infringement on their site, such as DMCA or a local equivalent. Amazon is generally good about responding, but other sites, well, responsiveness and effectiveness can vary widely and you have no recourse to getting damages.
Thus, if you write a book in, say, Australia, and you discover that someone in the US is making illegal copies and selling them, to pursue them you need to file suit in the US. Not in Australia. Same with the other way around, a US author has to pursue the issue in the foreign country.
One note. For US copyrights, you cannot sue in US Federal Court (and copyright infringement is a federal, not state, issue) for copyright infringement unless you’ve registered your copyright(s) through the US Copyright Office. However, if your copyright is originally in another country, you don’t need to register it in the US to sue in US Federal Court. However, you’re able to register your foreign copyright through the US Copyright Office. If you don’t register, you can sue, but only to get an injunction to stop the infringement and actual damages, if you can prove any. If you register, then you can sue for Statutory Damages. US citizens need to register to sue at all.
P.S. I hate that this question is from a QPPer, but I guess even they have to manage an intelligent question every blue moon amongst the massive dross. This one is actually something many authors and artists might not know and since Quora is international it’s useful to have an answer here.
The following countries are not signatories to the Berne Convention:
- Afghanistan
- Aruba
- Abkhazia (disputed territory)
- Angola
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Kiribati
- Maldives
- Marshall Islands
- Nauru
- North Korea
- Republic of Palau
- Palestine
- Independent State of Papua New Guinea
- Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (disputed territory)
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Solomon Islands
- Somalia
- Somaliland (disputed territory)
- South Ossetia (disputed territory)
- Swaziland
- Taiwan
- Tibet (although China is)
- Turkmenistan
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
But the Berne Convention just sets minimums for copyright laws (li
The following countries are not signatories to the Berne Convention:
- Afghanistan
- Aruba
- Abkhazia (disputed territory)
- Angola
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Kiribati
- Maldives
- Marshall Islands
- Nauru
- North Korea
- Republic of Palau
- Palestine
- Independent State of Papua New Guinea
- Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (disputed territory)
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Solomon Islands
- Somalia
- Somaliland (disputed territory)
- South Ossetia (disputed territory)
- Swaziland
- Taiwan
- Tibet (although China is)
- Turkmenistan
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
But the Berne Convention just sets minimums for copyright laws (like Life+50-ears for duration). It does not mean that these individual countries don't have copyright laws and that they don't respect the copyright of works made outside of their borders. There was also the Universal Copyright Convention (although none of the above states are party to that agreement).
And any nation that is in the WTO (or wants to be) needs to agree to uphold copyright of other member nations. This shrinks our list significantly, just international pariahs and island-states. And geographic regions with no functioning government at all (e.g. Somalia).
The following nations do not have copyright laws which protect works from outside their borders (or copyright laws of any kind), but also don't ban works from the West (e.g. Iran and North Korea):
- Abkhazia (Russian laws in place, but technically none)
- Ethiopia (laws in place, but zero enforcement: Copyright protection in Ethiopia: Shining law, zero effect)
- Kiribati (technically no, but has legislation that puts UK Copyright law into place in their country)
- Marshall Islands (none!)
- Republic of Palau (works of natives or of Palau-registered foreign works)
- Palestine (technically none, but observes UK Copyright laws)
- Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (unclear, but allegedly administered by Morocco)
- Somalia (effectively none)
- Somaliland (too new to have laws in this area, but they consider themselves bound by precious Somolia treaties with the WIPO)
- South Ossetia (Russian laws in place, but technically none)
Of these, the only country that literally has no copyright protections, either from observing laws of other countries, past treaties, or native-only protections, is the Marshall Islands. The only true copyright haven in the world.
Yes, it is possible.
In the US, the first step is to file the copyright with the Library of Congress. You don’t need to file the copyright until you are ready to enforce it, but you do lose some of your damages if you haven’t filed before the infringement starts.
Your next step is to go talk with an intellectual property attorney.
I am not an attorney, just someone remembering what I learned in class over a dozen years ago. My answer can be wrong either because of misunderstanding at the time or a poor memory.
Well most likely all countries around the world have some form of copyright protection nevertheless they didn’t sign the Bern Convention.
But in my view this doesn’t matter. If you use such a work without permission, the author can initiate a lawsuit in your country because the infringment will happen in your country.
Even if in the country of origin there is no copyright protection, you still can be sued because in case the work is copyrightable, the author can take advantage of your country’s copyright law protection.
I just skimmed their copyright law. I don’t think it mentions how a work is placed under the protection of copyright laws. I suspect then that it just happens when the film is made within Iran and it helps that the author is Iranian.
This is were I found it: IRAN: Copyright Law
Yes. You can sue almost anyone, anywhere, for anything. How far it will get depends on a whole host of different factors. I do not fancy your chances though, because you cannot even frame a sensible question. Without tekkeing which country you are in, and which country you are asking about, your question is pretty useless.
1. Copyright infringement is punishable by law. If a person breaks copyright laws, they could face fines or even jail time.
2. You may not use someone else's work without their permission.
3. Even if you do have permission, you still need to pay royalties for using someone else's work.
4. Copyright laws protect authors' rights to their works.
5. Copyright laws were created to protect artists and writers.
6. Copyright laws give authors control over how their work is used.
7. Copyright laws help create a fair market for creative products.
8. Copyright laws allow people to make money off of creativity.
9
1. Copyright infringement is punishable by law. If a person breaks copyright laws, they could face fines or even jail time.
2. You may not use someone else's work without their permission.
3. Even if you do have permission, you still need to pay royalties for using someone else's work.
4. Copyright laws protect authors' rights to their works.
5. Copyright laws were created to protect artists and writers.
6. Copyright laws give authors control over how their work is used.
7. Copyright laws help create a fair market for creative products.
8. Copyright laws allow people to make money off of creativity.
9. Copyright laws prevent theft.
10. Copyright laws protect originality.
11. Copyright laws encourage innovation.
12. Copyright laws promote free speech.
13. Copyright laws protect authors.
14. Copyright laws protect consumers.
As soon as you fix a work in a tangible medium (such as on paper or in a computer file — it just doesn’t exist in your mind), it is automatically copyrighted (protected by copyright law) and you are its copyright owner. No one else can legally make a copy of your work without your permission.
However, to sue someone else in U.S. Federal Court for copyright infringement, you must first register your copyrighted work with the U.S. Copyright Office.
It is theoretically possible for someone else to make a copy of the work that you published, register that work with the U.S. Copyright Office (falsely
As soon as you fix a work in a tangible medium (such as on paper or in a computer file — it just doesn’t exist in your mind), it is automatically copyrighted (protected by copyright law) and you are its copyright owner. No one else can legally make a copy of your work without your permission.
However, to sue someone else in U.S. Federal Court for copyright infringement, you must first register your copyrighted work with the U.S. Copyright Office.
It is theoretically possible for someone else to make a copy of the work that you published, register that work with the U.S. Copyright Office (falsely claiming that they are its copyright owner), and then sue you for copyright infringement. But they would have the burden to somehow prove that they were the actual creator of the work and that you had access to it and published a copy without their permission.
Note: The word copyright means the exclusive legal right for creators to make a copy of their creative work and to authorize others to make a copies of it. The word copywrite means to write advertising copy (text).
Tl;dr There are no countries without some sort of copyright laws in place.
Number of countries that have treaty with US for copyrights:
The following countries have no known copyright relations with the United States.
- Afghanistan
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Iran
- Iraq
- San Marino
- Turkmenistan
Copyright relations status is unclear; The following countries did not establish copyright relations with the United States but may be honoring obligations incurred under a former political status, including possible relationships as a territory.
- Tuvalu
- Sudan
- Somalia
- Seychelles
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Palau
- Nauru
- Kiribati
All these
Tl;dr There are no countries without some sort of copyright laws in place.
Number of countries that have treaty with US for copyrights:
The following countries have no known copyright relations with the United States.
- Afghanistan
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Iran
- Iraq
- San Marino
- Turkmenistan
Copyright relations status is unclear; The following countries did not establish copyright relations with the United States but may be honoring obligations incurred under a former political status, including possible relationships as a territory.
- Tuvalu
- Sudan
- Somalia
- Seychelles
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Palau
- Nauru
- Kiribati
All these 15 countries Afghanistan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, San Marino, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Sudan, Somalia, Seychelles, Sao Tome and Principe, Palau, Nauru, Kiribati have either adopted their own laws or adopted modified versions of WIPO.
As Guido Lois mentioned the laws are available but How seriously are they implemented is another question.
Source: International Copyright Relations of US.
Yes, copyright exist everywhere. If there is an infringment you need to collect strong evidence and to discuss this with a local attorney because the procedures copuld be different in the different countries.
I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. The only advice anyone should give is to talk to a lawyer.
There certainly is international copyright. Almost every country is covered by the Berne Convention or similar treaties that say much the same thing. However the law gets very complex when you are in one country, you took the picture from someone in another country and the web site is hosted somewhere else.
PicRight look legitimate to me. Note that their website tells you in the small-print at the bottom that you cannot depend on anything it says.
According to the website, or rather the one
I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. The only advice anyone should give is to talk to a lawyer.
There certainly is international copyright. Almost every country is covered by the Berne Convention or similar treaties that say much the same thing. However the law gets very complex when you are in one country, you took the picture from someone in another country and the web site is hosted somewhere else.
PicRight look legitimate to me. Note that their website tells you in the small-print at the bottom that you cannot depend on anything it says.
According to the website, or rather the one you get to by posing as an IP rights holder, they only find copyright infringements once they have a client who owns that copyright. They don’t go fishing on their own. The client will have checked that your use of the image appears to be a copyright infringement.
In my experience, talking to a lawyer, at least initially, is free of charge. Therefore that should be your first move.
PicRight are probably depending on you to pay to make the whole thing go away. A lawyer can tell you if that is a good idea.
You are making the dangerous assumption that they did not register their copyright in the U.S. . I don't know for sure but I don’t think you have to be a U.S. citizen to register your copyright here.
Like any other crime, the short answer is yes. Now, why do I call it a crime when you won’t be jailed for it? Simple, copyright infringement is theft. Let me put it to you like this: say you’re an inventor. You come up with a brand new tool that will change the world and Joe Blow steals your invention or rather, manufactures it without permission in effect stealing your money. That is exactly what copyright infringement does. So hopefully, you’re not planning on it.
If you life in such a country, you may be able to use the content in that country.
It does not mean that you are allowed to provide the content to other countries, so it would not help you much.
Many countries have signed an international agreement covering copyright. Not all countries abide by this agreement (and many have not signed it). If you are concerned about whether you have infringed on this agreement, consult a lawyer who specializes in international copyright law. The average lawyer does not.
PicRight is a group that wants you to pay, no matter what the legalities are. Since I am not a lawyer, I cannot evaluate this group for legality. It sounds fishy to me, though.
Seek legal help and make sure that you are represented by an experienced attorney. If you cannot find an attorn
Many countries have signed an international agreement covering copyright. Not all countries abide by this agreement (and many have not signed it). If you are concerned about whether you have infringed on this agreement, consult a lawyer who specializes in international copyright law. The average lawyer does not.
PicRight is a group that wants you to pay, no matter what the legalities are. Since I am not a lawyer, I cannot evaluate this group for legality. It sounds fishy to me, though.
Seek legal help and make sure that you are represented by an experienced attorney. If you cannot find an attorney, ask your local legal bar association for a referral.
There are a few important copyright treaties that have been signed by most of the industrialized nations of the Americas and Europe. These treaties generally result in the respect of a copyrighted work across national boundaries.
For a simple example, someone who has a copyrighted work in, say, France, can legitimately issue a DMCA request against a web site in the US.
If things degrade to the point where you need to sue someone, it gets more complicated, and you will need the help of a lawyer skilled in international IP law (I am not a lawyer). The US Copyright Office has a helpful document on
There are a few important copyright treaties that have been signed by most of the industrialized nations of the Americas and Europe. These treaties generally result in the respect of a copyrighted work across national boundaries.
For a simple example, someone who has a copyrighted work in, say, France, can legitimately issue a DMCA request against a web site in the US.
If things degrade to the point where you need to sue someone, it gets more complicated, and you will need the help of a lawyer skilled in international IP law (I am not a lawyer). The US Copyright Office has a helpful document on all of this from a US perspective:
https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ38a.pdf
-Mark
Although a few countries are not signatories to multilateral and bilateral global copyright agreements (as answered already), all but 4 have their own copyright laws.
At this point in time, Seychelles, Iran, Iraq and Palau do not have copyright legislation.
Each country’s copyright laws apply to its own citizens, and also to the use of foreign content when used in one's country. It allows creators and content owners around the world and citizens of many countries to enjoy copyright protection in countries other than their own.
There are about 16 countries that do not have copyright law at all. Before you get really excited, these are tiny places or Central Asian countries with no internet infrastructure or Somalia which does not have a fully working government.
Taiwan is the only developed nation that have copyright laws, but those laws only protect works made within Taiwan. Everything else can be copied and redistributed.
When you receive a notice of copyright infringement, the copyright holder will usually ask you to "cease and desist”. Most of the conditions of cease and desist notices are generally reasonable. There are various sources like individual owners, lawyers or ISPs who can send copyright infringement notices. After you receive one, you must find out the questioned copyright work. If the mentioned work is on your site, it should be easy, but if it's on someone else's site which you're hosting then you must inform them and ask about the origin of work. Whether you determine that there is the existenc
When you receive a notice of copyright infringement, the copyright holder will usually ask you to "cease and desist”. Most of the conditions of cease and desist notices are generally reasonable. There are various sources like individual owners, lawyers or ISPs who can send copyright infringement notices. After you receive one, you must find out the questioned copyright work. If the mentioned work is on your site, it should be easy, but if it's on someone else's site which you're hosting then you must inform them and ask about the origin of work. Whether you determine that there is the existence of copyright infringement or you can prove that you had the permission of that particular work or the work is yours. The response of the notice must be simple informing them that you have removed the infringing content or some proof attesting to the license to use the content. If it is more, please contact a lawyer of your choice.
Piracy is illegal in Mexico. Here is the thing, you will find all official merchandise as well as most big stores (there is Walmart, Best Buy, Costco, Sam’s club, local department stores, etc). Piracy is also a big time business, attracts lower income people. Recent estimates, state poverty rate is 46.2% and increasing! When you compare the cost of official merchandise to piracy and counterfeiting (with varied quality), is huge. The piracy industry has gotten out of control, is extremely profitable(although competition is intense and the margin of profit may decline); is easy to keep the gover
Piracy is illegal in Mexico. Here is the thing, you will find all official merchandise as well as most big stores (there is Walmart, Best Buy, Costco, Sam’s club, local department stores, etc). Piracy is also a big time business, attracts lower income people. Recent estimates, state poverty rate is 46.2% and increasing! When you compare the cost of official merchandise to piracy and counterfeiting (with varied quality), is huge. The piracy industry has gotten out of control, is extremely profitable(although competition is intense and the margin of profit may decline); is easy to keep the government quiet with bribes. It is also an industry that has been picked up recently by the drug cartels As a mean to launder money and gain economic control of their markets.
Another factor is social acceptance, people feel they’re getting a great deal, quality is undermined, and there is no moral conscience about the impact to legitimate businesses or safety implications. I remember a campaign trying to create conscience a few years back. It showed a dad or mom telling their children not to cheat on an exam, or not to copy their homework from others and the child would then tell the parent that they buy counterfeit items, isn't that the same?
No. If you live in a country that is a signatory to the Berne Copyright Convention, which most English-speaking countries are, your work is automatically copyrighted without you needing to do anything. This includes everything from your 12-book epic pirate series to the note you write thanking your Grandmother for your birthday present.
All lawsuits are either or both of:
- I suffered harm at some time in the past and would like restitution.
- I am currently suffering harm and would like an injunction.
“Both” would be an injunction and restitution for the total damages so far.
So yes, you can sue for retroactive copyright.
Be aware, in the United States the statute of limitations for copyright infringement is three years from the date of the most recent publishing/release. A website would be constant release of that copyright infringing material, a book would be the publishing date. A TV show would be each broadcast.
Carter Baker obser
All lawsuits are either or both of:
- I suffered harm at some time in the past and would like restitution.
- I am currently suffering harm and would like an injunction.
“Both” would be an injunction and restitution for the total damages so far.
So yes, you can sue for retroactive copyright.
Be aware, in the United States the statute of limitations for copyright infringement is three years from the date of the most recent publishing/release. A website would be constant release of that copyright infringing material, a book would be the publishing date. A TV show would be each broadcast.
Carter Baker observes in the comments some useful details to add to this answer. To sue for copyright infringement, you will need to register your work with the Copyright Office. Hopefully you did that around the time you published. But if you do not do so before the statute of limitations runs out then you no longer have the ability to initiate a copyright lawsuit. That clock starts when infringement occurs.
Only Eritrea, Turkmenistan and San Marino have no copyright protection either for authors within their borders or for foreign works.
In most other countries you cannot legally strip the DRM from a a just-released movie and share it online without the copyright owner’s permission.
A country can adhere to the Bern Copyright Convention, or the WTO’s TRIPS Agreement, or both. It can pass laws implementing those agreements. It can have courts where copyright infringement suits will be heard and damages awarded for copyright violations. It can provide for sizable statutory damages for copyright infringement, without proof of economic loss. It can actually enforce injunctions against infringers. It can provide effective mechanisms to collect damages that may be awarded.
Asked: “What can a country do to protect copyright?”
It depends on the laws of the country. If they have no IP protection laws, then yes it is legal there.
If however you carry or send that work into another country, you are subject to your host countries laws.
If someone infringes on your copyright and refuses to stop infringing, you get the nuisance of deciding whether to sue them.
We learned long ago lit doesn’t pay to sue people that are broke. After thousands of dollars of legal expenses you may win a judgement, but then you have to find out where their assets are so you can try to get an enforcement action to claim them.
If you have a good attorney a
If someone infringes on your copyright and refuses to stop infringing, you get the nuisance of deciding whether to sue them.
We learned long ago lit doesn’t pay to sue people that are broke. After thousands of dollars of legal expenses you may win a judgement, but then you have to find out where their assets are so you can try to get an enforcement action to claim them.
If you have a good attorney and get lucky with a sympathetic judge, you might be able to file for a Temporary Restraining Order or Preliminary Injunction to have the court order them to stop infringing on your intellectual property. This could order third parties to halt sales of their product pending the trial. Although unless you can show the harm is irreparable they might be free to keep infringing until it can be resolved in court.
Basically it’s a lose-lose proposition, unless some major company happened to infringe on your copyright, and even then they probably have the resources to tie you up for years in court, o...
The protection of intellectual property is a vital concern for any innovator or entrepreneur. In many countries, laws are in place to help protect people from having their ideas stolen or copied without their permission. In the United States, intellectual property rights are protected by the Copyright Act of 1976 and subsequent revisions to the law. This legislation offers protections for original works such as books, software, and art. Additionally, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets may be used to secure the right to produce a unique product or process. With these measures in place, anyo
The protection of intellectual property is a vital concern for any innovator or entrepreneur. In many countries, laws are in place to help protect people from having their ideas stolen or copied without their permission. In the United States, intellectual property rights are protected by the Copyright Act of 1976 and subsequent revisions to the law. This legislation offers protections for original works such as books, software, and art. Additionally, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets may be used to secure the right to produce a unique product or process. With these measures in place, anyone attempting to unlawfully reproduce an idea or invention could face serious legal ramifications.
Internationally, there are varying degrees of copyright and intellectual property laws that may come into play when someone attempts to steal an idea. The most widely recognized system is the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) which provides protection for patents and copyrights on a global scale. Depending on where an invention originates from, there can also be regional variations in legislation related to intellectual property rights. For example, Europe’s copyright laws are different than those in the United States; therefore what is considered infringement in one country might not necessarily apply elsewhere.
It’s important to be aware of all applicable international laws before seeking legal action if someone has stolen your idea or concept. Though certain protections exist in various countries and regions, no single set of regulations will cover all areas. Ultimately it is up to inventors and entrepreneurs to take necessary precautions when it comes to protecting their intellectual property and ensuring their rights are not violated by unauthorized parties.
If it is “their intellectual property," then they are the owner of that IP.
Only the owner of the intellectual property has the legal right to assert that right.
Over 180 countries (members of the Berne Convention, ref: WIPO) recognise copyright, irrespective of where it was established. The only difference is the copyright term, which varies between 30 and 100 years and is country-dependent. The majority of nations use the Berne Convention's 50-year term, but many Western nations have changed (or are in the process of changing) to a 70-year term after the creator's passing.
Intellectual property rights can be defined as the rights given to people over the creations of their minds. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creations for a certain period of time.
Intellectual property rights are traditionally divided into two main categories:
- Copyright and rights related to copyright: i.e. rights granted to authors of literary and artistic works, and the rights of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations. The main purpose of protection of copyright and related rights is to encourage and reward creative work.
- Ind
Intellectual property rights can be defined as the rights given to people over the creations of their minds. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creations for a certain period of time.
Intellectual property rights are traditionally divided into two main categories:
- Copyright and rights related to copyright: i.e. rights granted to authors of literary and artistic works, and the rights of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations. The main purpose of protection of copyright and related rights is to encourage and reward creative work.
- Industrial property: This includes (1) the protection of distinctive signs such as trademarks and geographical indications, and (2) industrial property protected primarily to stimulate innovation, design and the creation of technology. In this category fall inventions (protected by patents), industrial designs and trade secrets.
For the purposes of the TRIPS Agreement, “intellectual property” refers to:
... all categories of intellectual property that are the subject of Sections 1 through 7 of Part II of the agreement (Article 1:2). This includes copyright and related rights, trademarks, geographical indications, industrial designs, patents, integrated circuit layout-designs and protection of undisclosed information.
