Copyright and Droits d’Auteur

Moral and Patrimonial Rights granted to the owner of Artistic, Literary or Musical works, independent of the means or support that they are duly fixated. The software (as well as other similar creations, as computer games), is protected also by copyright and droits d´auteur, but has a specific legislation. Neighborhood rights are a Field of this area of Law, that not only protects the author, but the interpreter or performer (e.g. your interpretation of an Italian opera in the shower), and record producers.

The intellectual works subject to protection are creation of the human spirit, expressed in any kind of means and duly affixed in any kind of support, tangible or intangible, known or invented in the future.

As an example, art 7 of the Copyright and droits d´auteur law (Law 9610/98) mentions which are these creations of the spirit that may be subject to protection, including, literary, artistic or scientific texts, conferences, speeches, sermons and works of similar nature, choreographies and mime creations, musical compositions, audiovisual works, photography, designs, paintings, sculptures, etc.

The Protection of copyright and droits d´auteur extends, therefore, the literary, artistic and scientific works. The audiovisual and cinema works are also subject to copyright and droits d´auteur registration.

Moral Rights are those in which the author and his work are acknowledged, and therefore are inseparable, perpetual and are not subject to transfer, statute of limitations or burdens (arts. 22 to 25 of the LDA). We can present some examples:

• The right to claim, at any time, the property of his work
• Having his name, pseudonym, or convention sign indicated our announced, as being author, in the use of his work
• The right to maintain the work unedited
• Of assuring the integrity of a work, opposing to any change or to any acts in his work that in any manner affect his reputation or honor as due author
• The right of removing from circulation the work or suspending in any form of authorized use, when the circulation or use imply in offense to reputation or image, among other rights

Patrimonial Rights are those that enable the author owner economically use the work, publishing, diffusing, translating, transferring, authorizing its use, in all or in part, by third parties.

The patrimonial rights may be acquired by individuals or corporations through the transfer of such rights by the author.

The copyright and droits d´auteur, once the work is created are immediately valid in any country that has a treaty or reciprocity with Brazil, or else, almost everyone. The validity of copyright and droits d´auteur (with some exceptions) shall begin from the works´ creation and remains until seventy years after the death of the author, starting from the first of January after the decease.

However, there are important limitations that commonly frustrate the interested parties. Among them is the non protection of the ideas related to industrial or commercial improvement. Nevertheless, to protect these interests, the parties may establish previously negotiated or contracted conditions regarding the idea confidentiality. Exactly because commercial and industrial ideas cannot be protected, the businessman should care for protecting and maintaining exclusive the elements related to such ideas, among which, for sure are the trademarks, patents, industrial design and the software.