常问问题：版权
基础知识
通常在立法中找不到受版权保护的完整作品列表。尽管如此，总体上讲，世界各地通常用版权保护的作品包括：
- 小说、诗歌、戏剧、工具书、报纸文章等文学作品；
- 计算机程序、数据库；
- 电影、音乐作品和舞谱；
- 绘画、素描、摄影和雕塑等艺术作品；
- 建筑作品；
- 广告、地图和技术制图。
版权保护只延及表达，而不延及思想、过程、操作方法或数学概念本身。版权可能保护、也可能不保护标题、标语或标志等一些客体，取决于其是否含有充分的原创性。
版权分两类权利：
- 经济权利，可以让权利人从他人对其作品的使用中获取经济报酬；和
- 精神权利，保护作者的非经济利益。
多数版权法规定，权利人享有授权或制止对其作品的某些使用，或在某些情况下，从对其作品的使用中获取报酬（例如通过集体管理）的经济权利。作品的经济权利所有人可以制止或授权：
- 各种形式的复制，例如印刷品或录音制品；
- 公开表演，如戏剧或音乐作品；
- 录制，如录制为CD或DVD形式；
- 广播，不论是无线、有线还是卫星；
- 翻译成其他语言；
- 改编，例如将小说改编成剧本。
广为认可的精神权利的例子包括要求对作品标明作者身份的权利，以及反对对作品进行可能损害创作者声誉的修改的权利。
在绝大多数国家，并且根据《伯尔尼公约》，版权保护自动获得，无需登记或其他手续。
但很多国家仍然设有对作品进行自愿登记的制度。这种自愿登记制度有助于解决涉及所有权或创作方的争议，并为权利的经济交易、销售、让与和/或转让等提供便利。
请注意：WIPO不提供版权登记体系，也没有可检索的版权数据库。点此了解更多关于版权登记和文献系统的信息。
版权语境中所用的“作品”一词系指各种各样的智力创作，从小说到建筑、计算机程序等，不一而足。关于版权可以保护的作品详细清单，请参阅问题 “版权可以保护什么？”。
过去，一些国家制定了法律，要求版权持有者履行某些手续，以便获得版权保护。这些要求之一就是要使用一个表明要求版权的标记，例如符号©。现在，要求履行版权手续的国家已绝无仅有，因此使用这种符号也不再是法律要求。然而，许多权利人仍然使用符号©，以便清楚明确地强调其作品受到版权保护并保留所有权利，而非限制较弱的许可。
经济权利有时间限制，依各国法律而不同。在那些加入《伯尔尼公约》的国家，期限为创作者死亡后50年或50年以上。但国家可以规定更长的保护期限。 更多信息请联系贵国知识产权局或访问WIPO Lex查阅国家立法。
保护自己的作品
首先，版权保护在所有《伯尔尼公约》成员国 自动获得（请参阅问题“版权可以登记吗？”）。 尽管这些成员国的具体适用法律略有不同，总体上是高度相似的。你可以使用WIPO Lex查阅国家法律和条约。
至于那些未加入《伯尔尼公约》的国家，必须记住版权法具有地域性。换言之，版权法只在有版权法的国家适用。因此，如果想在国际上保护自己的作品，必须做一番调查研究，确保符合希望作品在该国受保护的国家的相关法律要求。
一旦成为作品的权利人，就可以授权他人使用或利用你的作品。这种授权通常称为“许可”，可能需要向权利人付费，也可能不需付费。当然，在谈判许可协议前，通常建议寻求专家的法律意见。
如果想把作品许可给广播组织、出版机构或娱乐场所（例如酒吧、夜总会等），加入集体管理组织不失为上策。集体管理组织代表创作者和出版商监控作品的使用情况，负责谈判使用许可和收取报酬。集体管理组织在音乐和文学作品领域尤其常见，这是因为同一个作品可能会有多个用户，权利人和用户很难对每次使用给予/请求具体授权，也很难监控用户的使用情况。
计算机程序和其他类型的软件从版权的角度可以看作是文学作品。因此，它们无须登记即可受到自动保护。有些国家的软件自愿登记流程可能与其他类型作品有所不同。
版权保护作品没有可检索的国际登记簿。
这是因为版权保护一般是自动的，并不取决于登记与否。在有些国家可以见到版权自愿登记/交存机构，这时对作品进行登记不失为明智之举，因为这样在发生争议时，比如关于作品的所有权归属问题时，将会大受裨益。
然而，有些国家确实要求交存在该国出版的印刷材料的样本，尽管这并不一定会对版权保护产生影响。更多信息请联系贵国知识产权局。
在采取任何措施之前，你应仔细评估这种复制是否真的侵犯版权（请查阅关于版权限制与例外的问题）。如果你认为自己的权利受到侵犯，你应该尽量找到责任人。如果通过非正式途径无法解决问题，或问题不适于非正式解决，你可以向法院或其他机关寻求法律救济。
通常可以向民事法庭提出索赔，要求金钱赔偿，还可以要求制止侵权的延续或重复。但在这么做之前，可取的做法是——有些国家是强制性的——首先向被控侵权人发出正式通知，要求其停止侵权行为并/或进行赔偿。
另外，如果未经授权的复制构成盗版刑事犯罪行为，可以依当地的适用法律向警方、检察机关或其他主管机关提起诉状。
在某些情况下，使用替代性争议解决机制（例如调解、仲裁、专家鉴定、中立评估等），可以提供不同于法院程序的有价值的解决方式，用这些方式解决争议时可能更简便、快捷、划算。
如果作品未经授权被复制并通过互联网提供，可以通知相应的互联网服务提供商，要求它阻止访问该侵权复制品。这样的程序通常称为“通知和移除（程序）”。
如果你加入了集体管理组织，通常请该组织采取适当措施就足够了。如果没加入，你要自行决定如何维护自己的权利。在这种情况下，最好是请律师代你行事。
集体管理组织代表创作者和出版商监控作品的使用情况，负责谈判使用许可和收取报酬。集体管理组织在音乐和文学作品领域尤其常见，这是因为同一个作品可能会有多个用户，让权利人和用户很难对每次使用给予/请求具体授权，也很难监控用户的使用情况。
通过WIPO Lex，可以轻松查询多个国家和地区的知识产权立法以及有关知识产权的多个条约。
许多国家和地区知识产权局也在它们的网站上提供关于国家或地区立法的信息。查看国家和地区知识产权局链接列表，以获得更多信息。
使用他人作品
一部作品的第一版权所有人通常是作品的原创者或作者，但也有一些例外。例如，在有些国家，版权作品的经济权利属于雇佣创作者的个人或单位。在别的一些国家，经济权利自动让渡或转让给雇主。 请联系贵国知识产权局，了解更多与你相关的本国具体情况。
由于大多数国家不要求履行版权保护手续，所以确定作品的权利人有时会很困难。要想找到某区域内一部作品的权利人，你通常可以联系：作品的作者或出版商、集体管理组织、当地作品登记部门或国家版权局等。这类机构可能拥有一些数据库，数据库内包含有关版权作品所有权的有用信息。
集体管理组织还可以协助你获得作品权利人的授权。
在某些情况下，可以使用不属于公有领域的作品而无需向作者或权利人请求授权或向其支付报酬，如果这种使用属于国家立法所规定的限制与例外的话。限制与例外的例子包括：
- 对作品的引用；
- 使用时事新闻；或者
- 为印刷品阅读障碍者制作无障碍格式。
法律制度的不同意味着有些制度对版权限制与例外作出了清晰规定，而在有些制度下，只能找到一条笼统的条款。这些笼统的规定经常被称为“合理使用”或“公平行为”条款。
说一件作品属于公有领域，是指该作品不再有权利人（的经济权利）。这通常是因为版权保护期限已过。例如荷马所作的著名诗歌《奥德赛》的经济权利已经失效，使用或利用这首诗歌无需获得权利人的授权或向其支付报酬。有些国家的作者还可以通过一个称作“自愿放弃”的程序，自愿将他们的作品纳入公有领域。 关于公有领域作品的更多信息。
一种常见的误解是，在包括社交媒体平台在内的互联网上公开的作品都属于公有领域，因此任何人都可以未经权利人授权而广泛使用。受版权或相关权保护的任何作品——从音乐作品到多媒体产品、报纸文章和视听产品——只要保护期限尚未届满，都受到保护，不论它们是以纸质方式还是数字方式发表。在每种情况下，通常都应该在使用前寻求权利人的授权。
一些网站含有通用许可，这种许可使你不必为某些特定使用寻求直接授权。这种许可只授权某些特定的使用，例如非商业的使用。在实践中，只有在下列情况下才可以使用通过博客或网站等公开发表的文字：
- 此种预期的使用属于授予网站的通用许可的范围；
- 此种使用属于版权限制或例外的范围；或者
- 你已为此种使用取得授权。
同样，如果你的中小企业所做的是通过网站发布或提供版权作品、录音、广播或表演等，那么也需要获得授权。
相关权或邻接权是授予协助向公众提供作品的特定个人或机构的一套独立的版权类权利。国家法律规定的相关权的受益方通常是表演者、录音制品制作者和广播组织等。
这一术语还指授予下述个人或机构的权利：这些个人或机构所创作的客体虽然在某些国家不符合版权制度规定的作品条件，但具有足够的创造性或者技术和组织技巧，因此理应通过某种类似于版权的权利得到承认。
但某些法律明确规定，相关权的行使不得损害并不得以任何方式影响版权保护。
相关链接
Frequently Asked Questions: Copyright
Basics
Copyright describes the rights that creators have over creative works: books, music, paintings, sculpture, films, computer programs, databases, advertisements, maps, and technical drawings.
Exhaustive lists of works covered by copyright are usually not to be found in legislation. Nonetheless, broadly speaking, works commonly protected by copyright throughout the world include:
- literary works such as novels, poems, plays, reference works, newspaper articles;
- computer programs, databases;
- films, musical compositions, and choreography;
- artistic works such as paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculpture;
- architecture; and
- advertisements, maps, and technical drawings.
Copyright protection extends only to expressions, and not to ideas, procedures, methods of operation or mathematical concepts as such. Copyright may or may not be available for a number of objects such as titles, slogans, or logos, depending on whether they contain sufficient authorship.
There are two types of rights under copyright:
- economic rights, which allow the rights owner to derive financial reward from the use of his works by others; and
- moral rights, which protect the non-economic interests of the author.
Most copyright laws state that the rights owner has the economic right to authorize or prevent certain uses in relation to a work or, in some cases, to receive remuneration for the use of his work (such as through collective management). The economic rights owner of a work can prohibit or authorize:
- its reproduction in various forms, such as printed publication or sound recording;
- its public performance, such as in a play or musical work;
- its recording, for example, in the form of compact discs or DVDs;
- its broadcasting, by radio, cable or satellite;
- its translation into other languages; and
- its adaptation, such as a novel into a film screenplay.
Examples of widely recognized moral rights include the right to claim authorship of a work and the right to oppose changes to a work that could harm the creator's reputation.
In the majority of countries, and according to the Berne Convention, copyright protection is obtained automatically without the need for registration or other formalities.
Most countries nonetheless have a system in place to allow for the voluntary registration of works. Such voluntary registration systems can help solve disputes over ownership or creation, as well as facilitate financial transactions, sales, and the assignment and/or transfer of rights.
Please note that WIPO does not offer a copyright registration system or a searchable copyright database. Find out more about copyright registration and documentation systems.
The term "work" is used in the copyright context to refer to a wide range of intellectual creations, from novels to architecture, computer programs, and more. For a more detailed list of works that can be protected by copyright, refer to the question "What can be protected using copyright?".
In the past, some countries had legislation in place that required the copyright holder to comply with certain formalities in order to receive copyright protection. One of those formalities was to include an indication that copyright had been claimed, such as by using the symbol ©. Currently, very few countries still impose formalities on copyright, therefore the use of such symbols is no longer a legal requirement. Nonetheless, many right owners still include the symbol © as a highly visible way to emphasize that that work is protected by copyright and that all rights are reserved, as opposed to a less restrictive license.
Economic rights have a time limit, which can vary according to national law. In those countries which are members of the Berne Convention, the time limit should be equal to or longer than 50 years after the creator's death. Longer periods of protection may however be provided at the national level. Contact your national IP office to find out more or visit WIPO Lex to consult national legislation.
Protecting your work
Firstly, copyright protection is automatic in all states party to the Berne Convention (refer to the question "Can I register copyright?"). Whilst there may be nuances to the particular national laws applicable in these states, in general there is a high degree of harmony. You can consult national laws and treaties using WIPO Lex.
When we consider states that are not party to the Berne Convention, you must remember that copyright laws are territorial. In other words, they apply within the country in which they were passed. As such, if you wish to protect your work internationally, you must research and make sure that you comply with the relevant legal requirements in the country(ies) in which you wish your work to be protected.
Once you are the right owner of a work, you can provide authorization for others to use or exploit your work. Such authorizations are commonly referred to as "licenses" and may or may not entail paying the rights owner. Naturally, it is always recommended to seek expert legal advice before negotiating a licensing agreement.
If you wish to license your work to users such as broadcasters, publishers, or even entertainment establishments (i.e. bars, nightclubs), joining a collective management organization (CMO) may be a good option. CMOs monitor uses of works on behalf of creators and publishers and are in charge of negotiating licenses and collecting remuneration. They are particularly common in the field of musical and literary works where there may be a large number of users of the same work and it would be difficult both for the owner of rights and the users to seek specific authorization for every single use and to monitor them.
Computer programs and other types of software are considered as literary works for copyright purposes. Therefore they receive automatic protection without the need for registration. In some countries, the process of voluntary registration for software may differ from that for other types of work.
There is no searchable international registry of copyright-protected works.
This is because, as a general rule, copyright protection is automatic and does not depend on registration. In some countries, however you may encounter a voluntary copyright registry/depositary and registering your work can be a smart choice as it would considerably assist you in the case of a dispute, for example over the ownership of the work.
Although it may not affect copyright protection, some countries do require a deposit of samples of printed materials published in that country. Contact your national IP office to find out more.
Before taking any steps, you should carefully assess whether the reproduction is in fact an infringement of your copyright (refer to the question on limitations and exceptions to copyright). If you consider that there is an infringement of your right, you should try to identify the person responsible. If it is impossible or inappropriate to solve the problem by informal means, you can seek a legal remedy from a court or other authority.
It is usually possible to bring a claim before a civil court for monetary compensation and also to prevent the continuation or repetition of the infringement. Before taking this step though it is often advisable – and even compulsory in some states –to first send a formal notification to the alleged infringer, requesting him to stop the infringement and/or to pay compensation.
Alternatively, if the unauthorized reproduction amounts to the criminal offence of copyright piracy, a complaint may be submitted to the police, public prosecutor or other competent authority in accordance with applicable local law.
In some cases, the use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms (such as mediation, arbitration, expert determination, neutral evaluation, etc.) can provide a valuable alternative to court procedures, as they may lead to a settlement of the dispute in a simpler, faster and cheaper way.
If the unauthorized reproduction of the work is being made available through the internet, it may be possible to notify the relevant internet service provider, asking it to prevent access to the infringing copy. Such procedures are generally known as "notice-and-take-down (procedures)".
If you are a member of a Collective Management Organization (CMO), it will often be enough to request it to take the appropriate steps. If you are not, it is up to you to act in order to protect your rights. It is often advisable, in such a case, to instruct a lawyer to do so on your behalf.
Collective management organizations (CMOs) monitor uses of works on behalf of creators and are in charge of negotiating licenses and collecting remuneration. They are particularly common in the field of musical and literary works where there may be a large number of users of the same work and it would be difficult both for the owner of rights and the users to seek specific authorization for every single use and to monitor them.
WIPO Lex provides easy access to intellectual property legislation from a wide range of countries and regions as well as to treaties on intellectual property.
Many national or regional intellectual property offices also provide information concerning national or regional legislation on their websites. View a list of links to national and regional intellectual property offices to find out more.
Using other people's work
The first owner of copyright to a work is generally the original creator or author of the work. There are, however, some exceptions to this rule. In some countries, for example, the economic rights to a copyright work initially rest with the person/organization employing the creator. In other countries the economic rights are deemed to be automatically assigned or transferred to the employer. Contact your national IP office to find out more about the particular national situation that interests you.
In general you always need authorization (this may take the form of licensing or an assignment of rights) before using a protected work. For certain uses, the authorization may come from a collective management organization instead of directly from the right owner, for example the authorization to use a song at a public concert.
You may be allowed to use a protected work without any kind of authorization under two sets of circumstances:
- Limitations and exceptions may exist at the national level, allowing you to use the work.
- Works can also sometimes be made publicly available under specific conditions or licenses that allow certain uses. When using such works, attention must be paid to the specific conditions of the licenses in order to identify exactly what is and isn't permitted by the right owner. There are several such licenses in common usage, e.g. the Creative Commons license, MIT License, the Mozilla Public License, and many others.
If you are in doubt, it is always advisable to speak to an intellectual property attorney.
As most countries do not impose any formalities on the provision of copyright protection, locating the rights owner of a work can sometimes be difficult. Finding the rights owner of a specific work in a territory is usually possible if you contact: the author or the publisher or a work, the collective management organization, the local registry of works, or the national copyright office. Such organizations may have databases that contain valuable information about ownership of copyrighted works.
Collective management organizations may also assist you in obtaining authorization from the right owner of a work.
In some cases it may be possible to use works that are not in the public domain without needing to request authorization from or remunerate the author or the right owner. This can occur if such uses are covered by limitations and exceptions in the national legislation. Examples of limitations and exceptions include:
- the quotation of works;
- the use of news of the day; or
- the creation of accessible formats for print disabled people.
Differing legal systems mean that under some systems, a clear list of limitations and exceptions to copyright is provided, whilst in others you may only find a general clause. Such general clauses are frequently known as "fair use" or "fair dealing" clauses.
When a work is said to be in the public domain (also referred to as "commons") what is meant is that the work no longer has a right owner (of the economic rights). This is usually because the term of copyright protection has expired. For example, the economic rights over the famous poem Odyssey, written by Homer, have lapsed and the work can be used or exploited without the need to obtain authorization or remunerate the right owner. In some countries, authors can also voluntarily include their works in the public domain through a procedure known as "voluntary relinquishment". Find out more about works in the public domain.
A common misperception is that works published on the Internet, including on social media platforms, are in the public domain and may therefore be widely used by anybody without the authorization of the right owner. Any works protected by copyright or related rights – ranging from musical compositions, to multimedia products, newspaper articles, and audiovisual productions – for which the time of protection has not expired, are protected regardless of whether they are published on paper or digitally. In each case you should, generally, seek the authorization of the right owner prior to use.
Some websites contain a general license that may exempt you from requiring a direct authorization for certain uses. Such licenses may authorize only certain uses, for example some non-commercial uses. In practice, with regards to a text publicly available on a blog or a website for example, you may not use the text unless:
- such intended use is covered by the general license granted through that website;
- the use is covered by a copyright limitation or exception; or
- you have obtained authorization for such use.
Similarly, authorization is required if your SME is engaged in publishing or making available copyright works, sound recordings, broadcasts or performances through your website.
Related or neighboring rights are a separate set of copyright-type rights given to certain persons or bodies that help make works available to the public. The beneficiaries of related rights in national legislations are usually performers, producers of phonograms, and broadcasting organizations.
The terms can also refer to rights given to persons or bodies, who produce subject matter which, while not qualifying as works under the copyright systems of some countries, contain sufficient creativity or technical and organizational skill to justify recognition via a right similar to copyright.
Some laws make clear that the exercise of related rights should leave intact, and in no way affect, the protection of copyright.