Can I protect my work internationally using copyright?

Firstly, it is important to note that copyright protection is automatically guaranteed in all countries that are party to the Berne Convention (see the question “Can I register copyright?”). While there may be slight differences in the specific local laws that apply in those countries, there is a high degree of consistency. You can consult national laws and treaties on this issue.

For countries that are not party to the Berne Convention, you should remember that copyright laws are territorial laws. In other words, they apply within the country that adopted them. Therefore, if you want to protect your work internationally, you should do your research and ensure that you comply with the relevant legal requirements in the country or countries in which you wish to protect your work.

What does it mean to “license” my work and how can I do this?

Once you become the owner of a work, you can grant permission to others to use or exploit your work. These permissions are generally referred to as “licenses” and may or may not involve a fee to the rights owner. It is always advisable to consult a legal expert before negotiating a licensing agreement.

If you want to license your work to users such as broadcasters, publishers, or even entertainment establishments (such as bars or nightclubs), joining a collective management organization may be a good option for you. These organizations monitor uses of works on behalf of creators and publishers, negotiate licenses, and collect remuneration. They are particularly common in the area of ​​musical and artistic works, where the same work may be used by a large number of users and it is difficult for both the rights owner and the users to seek specific permission for each use and to monitor all uses.

Can I copyright my computer program or mobile application?

Computer programs and other software are considered literary works for copyright purposes. As such, they benefit from automatic protection without the need for registration. In some countries, voluntary registration for software may differ from voluntary registration for other types of works.

Is there a copyright registry/repository?

There is no international registry that can be searched for copyrighted works.

The general rule is that copyright protection is automatic and does not depend on registration. However, in some countries, you may find a voluntary copyright registry/repository and it may be wise to register your work there, as this can be very helpful in the event of a dispute over ownership of the work, for example.

Some countries require depositing samples of material published in the country concerned, although this may not affect copyright protection. Contact your national intellectual property office for more information.

My work has been copied without my permission. What can I do?

Before taking any steps, you should carefully assess whether the copying actually constitutes an infringement of your copyright (see the question on limitations and exceptions to copyright). If you believe that your rights have been infringed, you should try to identify the person responsible. If the problem cannot be resolved or is not adequately resolved informally, you may be able to seek legal redress from a court or other authority.

It is usually possible to bring a civil action in court to obtain a financial award and prevent the infringement from continuing or recurring. Before taking this step, it is often advisable – and in some countries obligatory – to start by sending a formal statement to the alleged infringer requesting that they stop the infringement and/or pay a reward.

Alternatively, if the unauthorized copying amounts to the criminal offence of copyright piracy, you may file a complaint with the police, public prosecutor or other competent authority in accordance with applicable local law.

In some cases, resorting to alternative dispute resolution mechanisms (such as mediation, arbitration, expert determination, neutral assessment, etc.) can provide a valuable alternative to court proceedings, as they can lead to a simpler, faster and cheaper resolution of the dispute.

If a copy of the work is made available online, it may be possible to notify the relevant Internet service provider and ask them to block access to the infringing copy. These procedures are commonly known as “notice and takedown procedures”.

If you are a member of a collective management organization, it is often sufficient to ask them to take appropriate action. If you are not a member of such an organization, you will have to take action yourself to protect your rights. In this case, it is often recommended that you hire a lawyer to do this on your behalf.

How can I manage copyrighted works? What are collective management organizations?

Collective management organizations monitor the uses of works on behalf of creators, negotiate licenses and collect remuneration. They are particularly common in the field of musical and artistic works, where the same work is likely to be used by a large number of users and it is therefore difficult for both the rights owner and the users to seek specific permission for each use and to monitor all uses.

Related rights are a separate set of rights that are copyright-like and are granted to persons or entities that help make works available to the public. The beneficiaries of related rights in national legislation are usually performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations.

The term can also refer to rights granted to persons or entities that produce subject matter that contains sufficient creativity or technical or organizational skill to warrant recognition by a right similar to copyright, even if it does not meet the conditions to be considered works under the copyright systems of some countries.

Some laws make it clear that the exercise of related rights should not be confused with, or in any way affect, copyright protection.

In some common cases, the author or right holder cannot manage his rights himself but resorts to collective management.

It may not always be realistic to manage copyright and related rights individually. For example, the author, performer, artistic producer or media person cannot contact each satellite channel separately to negotiate licenses and remuneration for the use of their songs on the other side.

It is not practical for a radio station to request specific permission from each author, artist and producer to use each song or TV series for broadcast.

Collective management organizations facilitate the removal of rights for the benefit of both parties and a financial reward for the rights holders.

Collective management is through delegation to others or delegation to professional organizations specialized in collective management to manage their rights. Authors, performers, producers and all other rights holders can simplify the management of these rights.

Exclusive rights and collective bargaining can provide an alternative solution to collective management.

In most cases, there are collective management organizations that may be for-profit or non-profit entities and their legal form may be private or public according to the reference they represent.

There are different types of collective management methods including mandatory legal collective management in addition to voluntary contractual collective management.

All of this comes from the point of view of facilitating matters of literary property, especially copyright and related rights, which if used and managed by their owner himself or by each participant in the production, this would be very difficult and this hinders the possibility of publishing literary works whether they are copyright or related rights