Copyright
Invigorating and soothing music. Highly entertaining and action packed movies. Informative and educational books, magazines, journals, and scientific publications. Artistic and decorative pieces of sculptures, paintings, and drawings. All these and many more are covered and protected under copyright, the exclusive right that is given to a creator of an original work to bar other people from misusing or copying it and at the same time giving the creator the authority to manage the use of the original work. Apart from that, the creator is properly acknowledged, credited, and appreciated for his or her hard work through the copyrighted work.
Do you have an original work that qualifies for copyright protection? If yes, do you wish to have the original work and your rights properly protected? Come and talk to us. We shall assist you in every way we can.
What is copyright?
Copyright is the exclusive right conferred to an author of an original work, allowing him or her to control the use of it (i.e. reproducing and/or distributing the work in any material form; communicating, performing, showing, playing or rental of the work to the public; etc) and also to stop other people from illegally exploiting it.
What kinds of works are qualified for copyright protection?
The following works are qualified for copyright protection:
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Literary works;
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Musical works;
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Artistic works;
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Films;
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Sounds recordings;
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Broadcasts; and
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Derivative works.
What are the criteria for getting a copyright protection?
An original work is qualified for copyright protection when:
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sufficient effort has been expended to make the work original in character;
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the original work has been written down, recorded or reduced to material form;
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the author is a qualified person; and
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the original work arises in Malaysia.
Is there a registration system for obtaining a copyright protection?
There is no registration system for obtaining a copyright protection. The exclusive right is automatically vested to an author of an original work upon creation.
How do I show that I am the owner of the copyrighted work?
You can prove so by making a Statutory Declaration affirming that you are the author of the original work.
What is the protection duration of a copyright protection?
Depending on the kinds of copyrighted works, the duration of protection is either:
- the life time of the author plus 50 years after his or her death; or
- 50 years after the publication of the work.