What is a Copyright? What are its characteristics?

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What is a Copyright? What are its characteristics?

SOLUTION:

Copyright:

• Copyright is a unique kind of Intellectual Property.
• The right which a person acquires in a work, which is the result of his Intellectual Labour, is called his Copyright.
• The primary function of a Copyright Law is to protect the fruits of a man’s work, Labour, skill or test from being taken away by other people.

Characteristics Of Copyright:

Creation of a Statute:

Copyright is creation of a specific statute under the present law. There is no such things as common law copyright. No copyright can exist in any work except as provided in the section 16 of the Act.

Some Form of Intellectual Property:

A copyright is a form of intellectual property since the product over which the right is granted, e.g., a literary work, is the result of utilization and investment of intellect.

Monopoly Right:

Copyright is a monopoly right restraining the others from exercising that right which has been conferred on the owner of copyright under the provisions of the Act.

Negative Right:

Copyright is a negative right meaning thereby that it is prohibitory in nature. It is a right to prevent others from copying or reproducing the work.

Object of Copyright:

The object of copyright law is to encourage authors, composers and artists to create original works by rewarding them with the exclusive right for a specified period to reproduce the works for publishing and selling them to public. The foundation of Indian Copyright Law, which is of English origin and provenance has a moral basis, and is based on the Eighth Commandment, “Thou Shalt not Steal” (as held by the Supreme Court in R.G. Anand Case 1978).

Multiple Rights:

Copyright is not a single right. It consists of a bundle of different rights in the same work. For instance, in case of a literary work copyright comprises the right of reproduction in hard back and paperback editions, the right of serial publication in newspapers and magazines, the right of dramatic and cinematographic versions, the right of translation, adaptation, abridgement and the right of public performance.

Neighboring Rights:

Copyright consists not merely of the right to reproduction. It also consists of the right to works derived from the original works; rights like the right of public performance, the recording right and the broadcasting right which are as important or even more than the right of reproduction. Such related rights are termed "neighboring rights".