Copyright

Copyright is the legal right that gives a creator control over how their work is used. It lets them choose who may copy, share or sell their material, and it lets them stop anyone who copies it without permission. Copyright protects original creative works. These can be music, video, graphics, layouts and designs — such as a children's picture book, a recorded podcast episode, a set of icons or the layout of a leaflet page.

Protection happens automatically

A work does not need to be registered to be protected. Copyright applies as soon as the work is produced. Because of this, a creator may need evidence of when the work was first made, such as dated drafts or saved files, so they can show that someone else copied it later.

A copyright notice helps to show who owns a work. It normally shows the © mark, the year the piece was made or released, and the name of the creator or the organisation that owns the rights. It can also make clear that the item is protected, state when protection runs out and give contact details for anyone asking to reuse it. For example, a photographer printing a picture for a local exhibition can put that notice on the back of the mount, making it clear who made the picture and who should be asked before it is copied.

How long copyright lasts

For a film, the period is measured from the death of the last surviving member of that team, because more than one person can own rights in the same film. For a transmission, the period is measured from the first time it was sent out, rather than from a death.