What is the concept and classification of copyright subjects
Also known as copyright Persons, that is, those who enjoy copyright in literary, artistic and scientific works according to law, including natural persons, legal persons and other organizations. Under certain conditions, the state may also become the subject of copyright.
1. Original subject and inherited subject. The basis for division is the method of obtaining the copyright
Original subject: refers to the premise that after the completion of the work, directly in accordance with legal provisions or contractual agreements, there are no other basic rights. The person who owns the copyright in the work. Generally, it is the author. Under special circumstances, a natural person or organization other than the author may also become the original subject of the copyright.
Successor: A person who acquires all or part of the copyright through assignment, inheritance, donation or other means stipulated by law.
Difference:
(1) The concepts are different.
(2) Acquisition method: The original is not based on the premise of existence, but the rights enjoyed by the successor are obtained from the original place, and the original copyright of others is used. conditional on its legal existence.
(3) Whether the copyright is complete: The integrity of the copyright enjoyed by the original owner is more complete than that of the successor, because it is absolutely impossible for the successor to enjoy complete copyright, only Part or all of the property rights of the copyright can be obtained, but the personal rights of the copyright cannot be obtained.
2. Domestic subjects and foreign subjects. Classification is based on the nationality of the copyright holder.
Difference: Since copyright law has a very strict regional nature, there are obvious differences in treatment between domestic and foreign companies.
(1) Different protection conditions: Chinese authors and othersRegardless of whether the copyright owner's works are published or not, they are directly protected in accordance with the Copyright Law; if a foreigner's work is first published in China, he or she enjoys copyright in accordance with my country's Copyright Law. The copyrights enjoyed by foreigners' works published outside China according to the agreement signed between their country of origin and China or the international treaties they both participate in are protected by our country's laws.
(2) The regulations for the first publication of a work are different: the first publication of a work by a Chinese author refers to the first time the work is published within or outside China. For foreign authors, the first publication of their works in China means that the unpublished works of foreigners are first published in China, or the works of foreigners are first published outside China and then published in China within 30 days. The work is deemed to be first published in China; or if a foreigner's work is not published but is adapted, compiled and published in China with authorization, the work is also deemed to be first published in China.
(3) The starting period of copyright protection period is different: for works of Chinese citizens, legal persons or unincorporated entities, the copyright arises from the date of completion of the creation of the work. If a foreigner's work is first published in China, the copyright protection period shall be calculated from the date of first publication. The protection period for works published by foreigners outside China is determined according to the agreement signed by the country where they belong and China or the international treaties they both participate in and the provisions of my country's copyright law.
3. Complete copyright subject and partial copyright subject. It is divided according to the complete degree of copyright enjoyed by the subject.
Complete subject: refers to the author who enjoys all copyright property rights and moral rights of the works he creates.
Partial subject: refers to the person who obtains part of the copyright through transfer or inheritance.
(1) The author of a creative work is generally the complete copyright subject. If an author transfers part or all of his property rights to another person, he only has partial property rights or personal rights, and the author becomes a partial copyright subject.
(2) In some cases, the author may not even be or no longer be the copyright subject. For example, my country’s Copyright Law stipulates that a legal person is regarded as the author. In fact, the natural person author is not the copyright subject.
CopyrightThe original subject
(1) The author is first of all a natural person. “The citizen who creates the work is the author.”
The conditions that the author must meet:
1. Be a person who directly participates in the creation. That is, people who create with the help of language, words, colors, lines, etc., to reflect their own creative personality and characteristics.
2. The way to confirm the author is that, unless there is proof to the contrary, the person who signs the work is the author.
3. The author produces works stipulated in the copyright law through creative activities.
As the most direct and basic copyright subject, the author’s rights are the first, that is, he enjoys complete and original copyright.
(2) Legal persons and non-legal entities are also regarded as authors under certain conditions.
Any work hosted by a legal person or an unincorporated unit, created on behalf of the will of a legal person or an unincorporated unit, and for which the legal person or unincorporated unit bears the responsibility, the legal person or unincorporated unit The organization is regarded as the author.
If there is no proof to the contrary, the citizen, legal person or unincorporated unit that signs the work is deemed to be the author.
Other copyright holders who are the successors of the copyright
refer to In addition to the author, other citizens, legal persons, unincorporated units or countries that enjoy copyright in accordance with the law.
Main reasons for acquiring the copyright of the successor:
1. Due to inheritance, legacy, Obtained copyright by bequeathing a custody agreement. Only copyright in copyright can be obtained.
2. Obtain copyright due to contract.
(1) Obtain the copyright according to the entrustment contract. “The ownership of the copyright of a commissioned work shall be agreed upon by the client and the trustee.” If the contract stipulates that the copyright is enjoyed by the client, the client becomes the "other copyright holder" other than the author.
(2) Transfer of copyright. The copyright owner can transfer all or part of the property rights in the copyright to others, and the transferee of the property rights of the copyright is also the subject of the copyright.
3. The special subject of copyright is the state. The state becomes the subject of special rights for the following reasons:
(1) Purchase of copyright. That is, the state purchases the copyright from the copyright holder for some special needs, thus becoming the subject of the legal relationship.
(2) Accept gifts. That is, the author donates his protected work to the state, and the state accepts the gift.
(3) According to legal provisions. That is, the law stipulates that a certain work must be Within the validity period of protection, copyright is exercised by the state.
The copyright owner of special works
(1) The right owner of the derived work:
Refers to the work produced by adapting, translating, annotating, and organizing existing works.
The author of the derived work enjoys independent copyright, but the exercise of his copyright shall not infringe the copyright of the original work. When a third party uses the derived work, he should consult the original author and the consent of the author of the deduction.
(2) The right owner of the collaborative work:
Refers to A work jointly created by two or more people. The conditions (characteristics) that co-authors must meet:
1. The co-authors have a common creative desire, and they have a clear understanding of the creative behavior and There is a clear understanding of the consequences and the same goals.
2. The co-authors participated in the joint creative activities. If they did not participate in the creation, they will only provide consulting opinions and material conditions for the creation. People who provide materials, materials or other auxiliary work cannot be called co-authors.
How to exercise the copyright of a collaborative work: The copyright of a collaborative work is shared by all co-authors. When exercising the copyright It is with the consent of all collaborators. For divisible collaborative works, the authors can enjoy separate copyrights for the parts they created, but when exercising the copyright, they must not infringe on the entire collaborative work.of copyright. An indivisibly used collaborative work is a work that cannot be used alone. If the co-authors cannot reach consensus on the exercise of copyright, no party may prevent the other party from exercising it without justifiable reasons.
(3) The right owner of the compilation work (edited work):
That is, the right owner of the compilation work (edited work) Several works, fragments of works, or data or other materials that do not constitute a work, works that reflect originality in the selection or arrangement of content, such as anthologies, journals, newspapers, encyclopedias, etc.
The characteristics of compiled works that are different from collaborative works are:
1. Each of the compiled works There is no need for creative agreement between the authors, but agreement requires that each author has a desire to create together.
2. The achievements of each author in the compiled work can be distinguished, while the achievements of the co-authors are sometimes divisible and sometimes indivisible.
3. The compiled work is published in the name of the compiler, and the joint work is published in the joint name of the collaborators.
Regulations on the ownership and exercise of the copyright of compilation works:
1. The copyright of compilation works is owned by Compiler enjoys. "The compiler can be a natural person, a legal person or an unincorporated unit." "The unit organizes personnel to create, provides funds or materials and other creative conditions, and assumes responsibility for editorial works such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, teaching materials, large-scale photography albums, etc. The overall copyright belongs to a legal person or an unincorporated unit."
2. When exercising copyright, the compiler shall not infringe the copyright of the original work. If a copyrighted work is involved, the consent of the copyright holder of the original work must be obtained and remuneration must be paid to him or her.
The author of a work that can be used individually in a compilation may exercise his or her copyright alone. (This will be deleted when the new "Production Law" is revised)
(4) The rights owner of film and television works (movies, television, video works):
refers to a work that is filmed on a certain object, consists of a series of pictures with or without accompanying sound, and is projected and played with the help of appropriate devices. Including film works and works created using methods similar to filmmaking, also known as audiovisual works.The copyright of film and television works is enjoyed by the producer. However, the directors, screenwriters, lyrics, composers, photographers and other authors have the right to sign and are entitled to receive remuneration according to the contract signed with the producer. The scripts, Works such as music that can be used alone can be exercised by their authors alone.
The reason for this provision is that the production process of film and television works requires a large amount of manpower and financial resources. Producers have to recover costs after investing huge sums of money; and the rights to film and television works cannot be exercised by a single author, but must be exercised uniformly by the producer.
In order to respect the moral rights of creators, they should be allowed to sign their names on film and television works.
(5) Rights subject of professional works:
Refers to works created by citizens to complete the work tasks of legal persons or other organizations. Therefore, service works are closely related to the positions held by citizens. They are works arranged by legal persons or other organizations for their employees Or the results created by staff members performing their duties and tasks. Therefore, service works are neither the works of individual citizens nor works commissioned by legal entities or other organizations.
Ownership of rights:
1. Engineering designs, product design drawings and their descriptions, computers created using the material and technical conditions of legal persons or other organizations and for which they assume responsibility For professional works such as software and maps, the author enjoys the right of authorship, and other rights are enjoyed by legal persons or other organizations.
When identifying such professional works, please note:
(1) The material and technical conditions for creation are mainly provided by legal persons or other organizations, that is, legal persons or other organizations provide special funds, equipment or materials for their creation.
(2) The responsibility for the above works is borne by legal persons or other organizations, and this responsibility includes various risks and legal liabilities.
2. For professional works where the copyright is owned by a legal person or other organization according to legal provisions or contracts, the author has the right to authorize the work, and other rights are enjoyed by the legal person or other organization. The legal person or other organization may reward the author.
3. For other professional works created by citizens to complete the work tasks of legal persons or other organizations, their rights belong to the authors. However, legal persons or unincorporated units have Excellent within business scopeUse first (within 2 years). (Works created within one year after the author leaves the unit can also be regarded as work for work)
Within 2 years, the author has no right to authorize a third party to use the work without the consent of the unit. The work must be used in the same way as the unit uses it; if the unit does not use it within 2 years, the author may ask the unit to agree to allow a third party to use it, and the use method is not restricted. The unit shall not refuse without justifiable reasons.
Within 2 years, with the consent of the unit, the author allows others to use the work in the same way as the unit. The remuneration received shall be distributed by the author according to the proportion agreed with the unit.
(6) Ownership of rights for commissioned works:
Refers to the payment agreement between the client and the author Remuneration for a specific work created by the author in accordance with his will and specific requirements.
The difference between commissioned creations and job-based works: commissioned creations are the author's performance of his obligations according to the commission contract; job-based creations are the author's fulfillment of obligations stipulated in the law or labor contract , this obligation is often related to the author's own work.
The copyright ownership is agreed upon by the client and the trustee through a contract. If the contract is not expressly stipulated or no contract has been concluded, the copyright belongs to the trustee. It can be seen that our country focuses on protecting the interests of authors.
(7) Ownership of the rights of artistic works:
The copyright of artistic works belongs to the author ( Ownership can be transferred, separated). The transfer of the ownership of the original work of art is not regarded as the transfer of the copyright of the work, that is, it does not affect the copyright subject qualifications of the original author. However, the right to display original works of art belongs to the owner of the original work.
(8) Rights ownership of anonymous works:
refers to the author anonymizing his name, among which Includes works that are anonymous or whose real names are not indicated (the identity of the author is unknown).
The above is the relevant information compiled by the editor of Legal Savior Network for everyone. To sum up, we can understand that the subject of copyright is generally divided into corresponding subjects such as the subject of rights of deduction works, the subject of rights of collaborative works, the subject of rights of film and television works, the subject of rights of professional works, etc. If you have any other questions, please feel free to consult online.
