Caribbean Export OUTLOOK 2016 - 2017

Clearing the Hurdles

The ‘Poor Man’s Copyright Method’ involves mailing a physical copy of the work by registered post. The date stamped on the envelope is the registration date, but an author is best advised to place or embed a copyright legend on the actual work which includes name and date of creation.

Step 2: Income Generation A creative professional who is conducting business transactions regarding a copyright work will be faced with two choices: either to license the work on specific terms and conditions, or to fully assign the work, which severs any interest in the economic rights of the work. Similar to the use and negotiation of real property e.g. land, a creative professional can approach or be approached by interested parties such as producers, publishers, investors, broadcasters, and regular end users to allow for specific uses or even to fully assign all rights in the work to them. Some creative professionals may prefer to simply keep their works private and/or to commercialise it themselves. In the same way that a landowner will questionwhether selling the landwill benefit him more than investing in it and leasing it, a creative professional will have to consider very carefully any proposals put forward for the work. An IP/copyright attorney is the best source of advice since each transaction is unique and often consists of complex, multi-page contracts with many loopholes. This is a good opportunity to explain the aspect of related rights (also known as neighbouring rights) granted to performers, sound recording producers, broadcasters and cable service providers. When a copyright owner licenses or assigns a work to one of these entities, the rights to the derivative work are owned by the entity. In principle, unless there are any contracts to the contrary, each rights holder remains owner in full of the rights in their work, having simply

creation and before public exposure, in order to establish originality. There are generally accepted methods of registration in the region and worldwide, as listed below: The ‘Poor Man’s Copyright Method’ involves mailing a physical copy of the work by registered post. The date stamped on the envelope is the registration date, but an author is best advised to place or embed a copyright legend on the actual work which includes name and date of creation, e.g. © John Doe, August 2015. The envelope should remain unopened and used as evidence in the event of a legal dispute; Government-run voluntary copyright registration systems allow for rights holders to deposit a physical or digital copy of their work for recordation purposes and receive a certificate, which can prove very useful in negotiations and transactions, as an ownership claim over a specific work; Privately-owned voluntary copyright registration systems are also available in various jurisdictions and operate much in the same way as the government systems; and In many jurisdictions, there are mandatory requirements to deposit works with that country’s national library for the preservation and archiving of a collection of cultural heritage and historical matter. This can also be used as a part of the evidentiary proof that a rights owner took steps to identify himself/herself with the work. 1. 2. 3. 4.

given permission for use under specific terms. For example, a sound producer will license lyrics froma songwriter and amelody froma composer, and after editing and mastering a combination of elements will be the owner of the rights in the master recording released. Recently reported in Jamaica, artiste Duane Stephenson claimed that his former label is promoting and selling a short album, entitled Nature Boy, that not intended or agreed for public release. According to an article in the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper, dated May 8, 2015, the label producer, Kemar ‘Flava’ McGregor, has rebutted that he has the full rights to themasters as the producer and therefore committed nowrong by remastering and releasing these works. Every rights holder has the economic rights to C.A.R.D. – that is, to communicate to the public, adapt,reproduce,anddistributehisorherwork–as wellasthemoralrightstobeidentifiedastheauthor,

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