Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Copyright and related issues for SMEs

Vivien Irish

Consultant Patent Attorney

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Copyright works

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Literary copyright I Earliest dispute in AD 460, an Irish monk, later Saint Columba, copied a

collection of religious writings. The King held this was wrong.

Over 1000 years later, first copyright laws were enacted.

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Turkish Copyright Law (Act 5846)amended in 1995

Berne Convention 1886TRIPS – Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property rights – recognises that Berne provides adequate basic standards of copyright protection

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

TRIPS confirms that copyright :-- applies to expression not ideas- lasts at least life of author + 50 years- covers computer software

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Literary Copyright IIBooks, letters, reports, any words on paper or screen- provided they are original, but no test for literary merit

Computer software is a literary work

Compilations and databases are protected in a similar way to copyright(WIPO Copyright Treaty 1996)

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Artistic Copyright

drawings, paintings, sculptures, works of artistic craftsmanship, architectural works

provided they are original, no test for artistic merit

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Other copyright works

films, sound recordings, broadcasts, cable programmes, music, plays, typefaces, typographical editions

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Exclusions from copyright Ideas, discoveries, methods or principles of construction, illegal or immoral works

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

How and how long?

Protection is automatic, no registrationTurkey – 70 years from publicationWIPO – life of author + 50 yearsSome countries – life of author + 70 years

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Author and owner in TurkeyPerson who writes or draws or composes is the authorIf that person is an employee, the employer owns copyrightIf that person is a freelance, the author owns copyrightIf that person works under a commission, the person paying the fee owns copyright

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Marking

© Vivien Irish 2004CopyrightCopr.

In Turkey, marking is compulsory for some products, eg videos, films, musical works

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Scope of protection

Owner of copyright can stop others from:-using or copying the workimporting, selling, hiring, distributing infringing copiesproviding means to make infringing copies

MUST show that there has been copying

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Not infringement

- copying or use privately - copying for commercial research- reporting current events- criticism or review

plus educational exceptions

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Remedies

Civil or criminal offenceCivil – injunction to stop the misuse, payment of damagesCriminal – fine and-or imprisonment

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Moral Rights

• Paternity right – the right to be named• Integrity right – the right to object to distortion or

mutilation of the work• False attribution – the right to prevent false

naming• Privacy right – for photographs, the photographer

owns the copyright but the person in the photograph can control its publication

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Computer programs I “buying” software = paying for a copyright licence, to load the program onto a PC, to run the program on the PC

Licence sets out what is permitted eg load on only one PCeg load onto a network of x PCs

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Computer programs II

“Shrinkwrap” licencesoftware packaged in transparent filmlicence terms visible through the filmbreaking the film = accepting the licence

“Clickwrap” licencesoftware distributed via Internetbefore download, licence terms displayedclicking box for “yes” or “accept” means the licence terms apply

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Success through copyright (1)

20/20 Speech Ltd, Malvern, England

Formed in 1999

Derived from MOD Speech Research Unit

Works with speech processing software

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

Success through copyright (2)

Exclusive patent licence from MOD

Plus its own patent rights developed later

Trademark “AURIX” assigned from MOD

Develop and supply speech synthesis and speech recognition software

Supply consultancy to MOD

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

20/20 Software products (1)

Speech recognition – in cars and PCs

low memory solution

Text-to-Speech synthesis software – for PDAs and low memory portables

Speech recognition – align text and audio, eg for legal transcripts

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

20/20 software products (2)

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

20/20 Speech licences

Copyright licenses:

1.20/20 to supplier, supplier sells access time

2. 20/20 to supplier, supplier to end user for one-off license fee, end user loads PC or PDA

1+2. Conditions - supplier agrees to use TM Aurix® and not to change the software

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

20/20 speech success

Since 1999 and with 27 staff:

14 licences granted

5 in USA, 7 in UK, 1 in Japan, 1 in Australia

Commercial income doubled in 2002/03

Vivien Irish, Patent Attorney, WIPO and TPI, January 2005

The end

thank you