The Law Handbook 2024

752 NOTE The law in this chapter is current as at 1 September 2023. What is copyright? Definition and legislation Copyright is a form of intellectual property consisting of the right to control the exploitation of literary, musical, artistic and dramatic works, as well as sound recordings, films, broadcasts and published editions. Generally, only the copyright owner, or someone who has their permission, can publish, copy or perform copyright material, or transmit it electronically to the public. In Australia, the rights of copyright owners derive from the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) (‘ Copyright Act ’). The Copyright Act also grants other rights (performers’ protection and moral rights) that complement copyright. NOTE Unless stated otherwise, all references to legislation in this chapter are references to the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). What material can be subject to copyright? Materials that can be copyright are: • literary works (including computer programs); • dramatic works; • musical works; • artistic works (including buildings); • sound recordings; • films; • sound and television broadcasts; and • published editions. Literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works are all ‘works’ in the Copyright Act and in this chapter. Copyright 7.6 Literary works The term ‘literary works’ is not defined in the Copy­ right Act. Courts have held that any work expressed in print or writing is a literary work. Section 10(1) of the Copyright Act provides that a literary work includes a table, or compilation, expressed in words, figures or symbols, and a computer program or a compilation of computer programs. The definition of ‘computer program’ is wide enough to include both the source code written by programmers and the machine-readable object code that causes a computer to perform a function. A piece of writing does not have to have a ‘literary’ quality, in the sense that the word is used in ordinary speech, in order to be a literary work for the purposes of the Copyright Act. Business letters, technical manuals and lists of gambling odds have all been held to be literary works. Copyright exists in both published and unpublished literary works. Dramatic works These are works that are intended to be performed (e.g. plays, opera libretti, and scripts for radio, television or film). Section 10(1) of the Copyright Act specifically includes dance and mime productions as dramatic works (describing them as ‘choreographic shows’ and ‘dumb shows’). Copyright exists in dramatic works regardless of whether they have been performed, produced or published. Musical works These are not defined by the Copyright Act but courts have described music as ‘combining sounds for listening to’. All kinds of music are included, regardless of artistic merit. Music does not need to have been published or performed for copyright to exist, but it needs to have been written down or recorded in some way. Song lyrics Song lyrics are literary works and so have a separate copyright. Song lyrics have traditionally not been considered to be musical works. Contributor: Margaret Ryan, Lawyer and Trade Marks Attorney, IP by Margaret®