Copyright

Copyright - this is a legal term denoting rights that are granted to authors of literary and artistic works.

Objects of copyright protection

The objects of copyright protection may be literary works, in particular: novels, poetry, plays, reference books, newspapers and computer programs; data base; films, musical and choreographic works, works of fine art, such as paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures; works of architecture, as well as advertising paintings, maps and drawings.

Exclusive right

The direct authors of copyrighted works, as well as their successors, are granted certain fundamental rights. They are the holders of the exclusive right to use the work and the right to grant the right to use the work to third parties under agreed conditions. The author of the work may allow or prohibit:

• reproducing it in one form or another, for example in the form of a printed publication or sound recording;
• its public performance, for example in a play or a piece of music;
• burning it, for example, to a CD, cassette, or videotape.

Related rights

The last 50 years have seen a rapid development in the field of related rights. Related rights form around copyrighted works and provide similar protection, but often more limited in scope and duration:

• performers (actors and musicians) have related rights to their performances;
• producers of phonograms and films have related rights to their phonograms and films;
• radio and television organizations have similar rights over their radio and television programs.

 
Copyright and related rights are necessary conditions for the development of creativity, providing authors with an incentive in the form of recognition and fair remuneration. This system of protection of rights provides authors with a guarantee for the distribution of their works without fear of unauthorized copying or piracy.

And this, in turn, provides freer access to the world's population to cultural values, knowledge and entertainment, and also guarantees their higher quality.