COPYRIGHT, DESIGNS & PATENTS ACT (1988)

By Hassan Hanif & Dharamdeep Janjua

COPYRIGHT

Copyright is one of the main types of intellectual property - others

include designs, patents and trademarks.  Intellectual property

allows a person to own things they create in the same way as

something physical can be owned. It is the right to prevent others

copying or reproducing someone's work.

The main legislation dealing with copyright in the United Kingdom

is the Copyright, Design and Patents Act, 1988. 

The law came into use on 15 November 1988.

The most recent amendment to the policy was in 2006.

REASONS FOR THIS LAW

A copyright gives an artist protection for his/her

work. If you are the creator of an original work and

you have the work copyrighted - it protects from

people being able to steal your work and making

money that would otherwise be yours

HOW IT AFFECTS BUSINESSES

It depends on the nature of the business. A publisher might rely on his

own rights to make money, a retailer might rely on the scarcity of

protected materials, and other businesses might need to license materials

from rightholders.

Copyright in the business context helps your organisation to look after

and recognise the value of the copyright it has, and to make sure it does

not infringe the copyright of others.