Copyright law of New Zealand
Encyclopedia
The copyright law of New Zealand is covered by the Copyright Act 1994
and subsequent amendments. It is administered by Intellectual Property Policy Unit of the Ministry of Economic Development (MED).
New Zealand is party to several international copyright agreements, including the TRIPS Agreement 1994
, the Berne Convention 1928
and the Universal Copyright Convention 1952
.
law grants the owner of the copyright exclusive rights to certain restricted acts, which include the following.
Copyright does not apply to certain government works, such as Acts of Parliament, Regulations, Parliamentary debates, Court judgements and reports of Select Committees, Royal Commissions, Commissions of Inquiry, etc.
Law changes were enacted in 2008, most notably the Copyright (New Technologies) Amendment Act. These changes were influenced by media corporations and aligned organisations (RIANZ
, APRA
, Artists Alliance, NZSA, AIPA, NZIPP, etc.) but opposed by New Zealand artists, technology specialists, ISPs
, businesses, media commentators, librarians and members of the public. The nature of the law changes attracted attention internationally.
The New Zealand Prime Minister, John Key
, stated that the stronger copyright laws, including the controversial section 92a, were required for New Zealand to be able to negotiate a free trade agreement with America.
In February 2010, a bill repealing s92a was introduced to parliament, replacing it with a three notice regime for copyright infringement via file sharing. The bill also provides for the Copyright Tribunal to hear complaints and award penalties of up to $15,000. The notice regime took effect on 1 September 2011.
Copyright Act 1994
-External links:*...
and subsequent amendments. It is administered by Intellectual Property Policy Unit of the Ministry of Economic Development (MED).
New Zealand is party to several international copyright agreements, including the TRIPS Agreement 1994
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights is an international agreement administered by the World Trade Organization that sets down minimum standards for many forms of intellectual property regulation as applied to nationals of other WTO Members...
, the Berne Convention 1928
Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works
The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, is an international agreement governing copyright, which was first accepted in Berne, Switzerland in 1886.- Content :...
and the Universal Copyright Convention 1952
Universal Copyright Convention
The Universal Copyright Convention , adopted at Geneva in 1952, is one of the two principal international conventions protecting copyright; the other is the Berne Convention....
.
Scope of copyright
CopyrightCopyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
law grants the owner of the copyright exclusive rights to certain restricted acts, which include the following.
- copying the work
- publishing, issuing or selling copies to the public
- performing, playing or showing the work in public
- broadcasting the work
- making any work derived or adapted from the copyright work.
Copyright works
Copyright automatically applies (no registration required) to original works in the following categories.- Literary works (novels, poems, song lyrics, computer programmes, compilations of data)
- Dramatic works (scripts for films or plays)
- Artistic works (paintings, plans, maps, photographs, sculptures, models, buildings)
- Musical works (scores and arrangements)
- Sound recordings (of musical, literary or dramatic works)
- Films
- Broadcasts (radio, TV, cable)
- Typographical arrangement of published editions (this exists independent of copyright in the published work, if any).
Copyright does not apply to certain government works, such as Acts of Parliament, Regulations, Parliamentary debates, Court judgements and reports of Select Committees, Royal Commissions, Commissions of Inquiry, etc.
Copyright term
The copyright term is largely consistent with other countries, although it has not increased from 50 to 70 years as in Europe and the United States, and varies with the category of the work.- Literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works; 50 years from the death of the author
- Artistic works industrially applied; 16 years from when the work is applied
- Artistic craftsmanship industrially applied; 25 years from when the work is applied
- Sound recordings and films; 50 years from when it is available to the public
- Broadcasts and cable; 50 years from broadcast
- Typographical arrangements; 25 years from first publishing.
Exclusions and fair dealing
The Act allows for certain permitted acts to be exempted from copyright restrictions.- Fair dealing; for purpose of criticism, review, news reporting, research, private study.
- certain educational purposes
- time shiftingTime shiftingTime shifting is the recording of programming to a storage medium to be viewed or listened to at a time more convenient to the consumer. Typically, this refers to TV programming but can also refer to radio shows via podcasts....
of TV programmes for viewing at a later time - format shiftingFormat shiftingFormat shifting is the conversion of media files into different formats. This may be required to play the media on different devices, for example when converting or ripping audio files on CDs into digital formats such as MP3...
of music - back up of computer programmes
- making copies in Braille.
Moral rights
The copyright act also provides moral rights for the author. These attach to the author, and are not transferred by contract as economic rights can be. Moral rights give the author the right;- to be identified as the author (right of attribution)
- to object to derogatory treatment of the work (right of integrity)
- to not have work falsely attributed to them.
New technologies amendments
In 2001, the MED initiated a major review of copyright law, in light of new technologies, such as media in digital form and communications via the internet.Law changes were enacted in 2008, most notably the Copyright (New Technologies) Amendment Act. These changes were influenced by media corporations and aligned organisations (RIANZ
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...
, APRA
Australasian Performing Right Association
The Australasian Performing Right Association is a copyright collective representing New Zealand and Australian composers, lyricists and music publishers. The association's head offices located in Sydney Australia, and it has branch offices in Auckland, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth...
, Artists Alliance, NZSA, AIPA, NZIPP, etc.) but opposed by New Zealand artists, technology specialists, ISPs
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
, businesses, media commentators, librarians and members of the public. The nature of the law changes attracted attention internationally.
The New Zealand Prime Minister, John Key
John Key
John Phillip Key is the 38th Prime Minister of New Zealand, in office since 2008. He has led the New Zealand National Party since 2006....
, stated that the stronger copyright laws, including the controversial section 92a, were required for New Zealand to be able to negotiate a free trade agreement with America.
In February 2010, a bill repealing s92a was introduced to parliament, replacing it with a three notice regime for copyright infringement via file sharing. The bill also provides for the Copyright Tribunal to hear complaints and award penalties of up to $15,000. The notice regime took effect on 1 September 2011.
See also
- List of countries' copyright length
- Anti-Counterfeiting Trade AgreementAnti-Counterfeiting Trade AgreementThe Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement is a proposed plurilateral agreement for the purpose of establishing international standards on intellectual property rights enforcement...
- New Zealand Internet BlackoutNew Zealand Internet BlackoutThe New Zealand Internet Blackout was an online protest spearheaded by the against changes to copyright law in New Zealand, most notably Section 92A of the Copyright Amendment Act....