Copyright Registration akistan

What is copyright?
Copyright protects to original work of authorship fixed in any tangible medium
of expression. Original work means the work which is not copied of any existing
work. Copyright is a legal right to prevent others making copies, publish,
reproduce, distribute etc. of your work without your permission. Copyright
gives protection only to expressions, and not to ideas, procedures, methods of
operation or mathematical concepts. It means that copyright doses not give
protection to idea only but it gives protection to expression of idea.

Top 4 reasons to register your Copyright:

1. Registering a Copyright will create a public record showing you as the owner.
2. Registered Copyright will become the evidence you need to prove your ownership.
3. You can license your work and charge fees for the use of your work.
4. Protection is the ultimate reason for registering Copyright.

Definition Of Copyright Under The Laws of Pakistan:
Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works. This protection is available to both published and unpublished works.

Who is authorized to claim copyright in Pakistan??

Copyright as a work of authorship immediately becomes the property of the author who created the work. Only the author or those deriving their rights through the author can rightfully claim copyrights.
In the case of a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment; the employer and not the employee is considered to be the author, if the parties expressly agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work shall be considered a work made for hire.
The authors of a joint work are co-owners of the copyrights in the work, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.

What works are copyrightable in Pakistan?

Copyright work/Copyright registration can categorized by following Parts

Part-I:    Literary works (Books, Magazines, Journals, Lectures, Sermons, Dramas, Novels, and also  including Computer Programs and   Compilation of Data)

Part-II:    Artistic works (Paintings, Photographs, Maps, Charts, Calligraphies, Sculptures, Architectural Works, Drawings, Label Designs, Logos, Monograms etc).

Part-III:  Cinematographic works   (Motion Pictures, Video Cassettes, VCD’s, DVD’s   etc.).

Part-IV:    Records Works    (Audio Cassettes and CD’s).

Who is the first owner of copyright?

Copyright ordinance provides that the author of a work shall be the first
owner of the copyright. Authorship applies to either the individual creator or to
a “work for hire”. When an independent individual creates an original work he
will be the first owner of copyright. Where a work is made by an employee in the
course of employment and as part of the employee’s usual duties, the employer
will be the first owner of copyright.

Is copyright registration necessary for protection?

The ordinance does not require mandatory registration of copyright but
registration does provide certain rights and is highly recommended. Copyright
rights are obtained automatically without its registration or other formalities.
The rights under copyright law arise as soon as the author creates the work in
any tangible medium. As it has been specified above that Pakistan is a member
of Berne Convention 1886 for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works,
according to the Berne Convention, literary and artistic works are protected
without any formalities in the countries party to that Convention.
Duration of Copyrights

Copyrights ordinance provides that in published literary (including
computer program), dramatic, musical and artistic work copyright shall subsist
within the lifetime of the author until fifty years after the death of the author.
Infringement of copyright

The act of copying of work, which is entitled to copyright protection, by any
method, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device, constitutes an
infringement of the copyright. The Ordinance provides copyright protection in
the following cases:
(a) When any person without the consent of the owner of the copyright or
without a license granted by owner of copyright or the Registrar under the
Ordinance:
a) Evades any of the rights given to the author of the Copyright, or
b) Permits for profit any place to be used for the performance of the work in
public where such performance constitutes an infringement of the
copyright in the work unless he was not aware and had no reasonable
ground for suspecting that such performance would be an infringement of
the copyright.
(b) When any person: -
(i) Makes for sale or hire or sells or lets for hire, or by way of trade
displays or offers for sale or hire, or
(ii) Distributes either for the purpose of trade to such as extent as to affect
prejudicially the owner of the copyright, or
(iii) By way of trade exhibits in public, or
(iv) Imports into Pakistan any infringing copies of the work.
Remedies for Infringement of copyright

There are two remedies for breach of copyright in Pakistan; civil proceedings and
criminal proceedings. Accordingly, a person whose copyrights have been
infringed may sue for damages, claim an injunction, claim account of the profits
gained by the defendants as a result of the infringement, confiscate infringed
articles etc. Recently added section of the Ordinance provides that all offences
under the Ordinance are cognizable and non-bailable. The Ordinance provides
that the original owner of the copyright may bring an action, which includes the
person to whom an exclusive licence has been granted. Amended Section of the
Ordinance provides that every suit or other civil proceedings regarding
infringement, at the discretion of the applicant, should be instituted and tried in
the Court of the District Judge.
The Ordinance, as amended by the Amendment Act, provides that any person
who knowingly infringes or facilitates the infringement of the copyright in a
work (defined to include computer programmes), or any other right conferred by
the Ordinance will be punishable. The punishment may be in the form of
imprisonment extended to three (3) years, or fine upto to Rs. 100,000, or both.
Additionally, the Ordinance provides that where any person convicted for an
offence punishable under this law is again convicted for the same offence, he
shall in such event be imposed with a fine (beside the imprisonment upto 3
years) of upto Rs. 200, 000. Recently amended section of the Ordinance now
gives additional powers to the police to seize infringing copies of the work
wherever found, without warrant, and all copies, plates and recording
equipment seized shall, as soon as possible, be produced before a Magistrate.
Offences by companies

In case of an offence committed by a company, the person who was in charge of,
or was responsible for conducting business of the company is considered to be
guilty of that offence and is liable to be proceeded against and punished
accordingly.
Need assistance? Call us at Phone:+92 (0)51 485 3500,+92 (0)51 4424 580,+92 (0) 321 5019455
Follow us on : Facebook

back to top