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11.0 International Copyright Issues

By Lesley Ellen Harris, Esq.

11.1 Question: If I live in a country where the duration of copyright is life+50 (as in Canada), rather than life+70 (as in the U.S. and EU countries), for what duration do I need to obtain permission for works being posted on my Web site?
Answer: Since works on a Web site are accessible from around the world, it is best to clear permission for life+70 years for all works. If you are accessing any of the works in Canada, let?s say, permission is only necessary for life+50 (even for U.S. or EU works), however if those same works are accessed from a U.S. Web site, then permission for life-70 may be necessary (assuming the works will be available for that length of time.) (2007-1)

11.2 Question: What is the role of the WIPO treaties on copyright law (www.wipo.org) and how do they govern copyright in each country?
Answer: WIPO administers a number of copyright treaties however these treaties do not govern the copyright law in any country. Rather, the countries who adhere to these treaties must include the minimum standard of copyright protection in these treaties. For instance, the Berne Convention specifies 50 years after an author?s death as the minimum duration of copyright protection. Each Berne member country must protect copyright works for at least 50 years, but may do so for longer, as in the U.S., for 70 years. (2007-2)

11.3 Question: Do I need to register copyright in each country where I want to claim copyright protection?
Answer: No. If a work is protected by copyright in your own country (assuming the country is signatory to the Berne Convention), then the work is protected in all Berne Convention countries. No additional steps including registration are necessary to obtain protection. Note that registration is not mandatory in Berne Convention countries. A list of Berne Convention countries is at: www.wipo.int. (2007-3)

Full post as published by Copyrightlaws.com on June 04, 2008 (boomark / email).