

This includes material reproduced for the purposes of non-commercial research or private study, for criticism or review or for the reporting of current events. There are a number of specified exceptions in UK law which permit copying in certain circumstances (for instance, use in judicial proceedings) or for certain categories of people (for example, the visually impaired).Īnother group of exceptions falls into the scope of ‘fair dealing’.

Providing the means for making an infringing copy.Possessing or dealing with an infringing copy.Secondary infringement may occur if someone carries out any of the following acts without permission from the copyright owner: A rule followed by many is if something is worth copying, it is protected by copyright. In some cases, a four-word extract has been considered substantial. However, Copyright for work created by an employee during the course of their employment is owned by the employer.ĭefinitions of what constitutes a ‘substantial’ part of a work can be subjective. In general, the author or creator of the work owns the copyright. the layout or actual appearance) of published editions Original literary works (such as novels, poems, tables, lists, and computer programmes).The main works currently protected by copyright in the UK include:

The work must be original, meaning it needs to originate with the author, who will have used some judgement or skill in its creation. The main legislation dealing with copyright in the United Kingdom is the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.Ĭopyright arises automatically when a work that qualifies for protection is created. Intellectual property gives a person ownership over the things they create, the same way as something physical can be owned. It allows the copyright owner to protect against others copying or reproducing their work. To answer one of the most common asked questions, "What is copyright meaning?", we should clarify Copyright is one of the main types of intellectual property.
