Abstract
The protection of copyright is an obligation of nations in order to promote and encourage innovation and creativity The copyright law gives the owner of copyrighted work the exclusive right to control the reproduction of copyrighted works. This right, however, does not bestow on the copyright owner an absolute monopoly to control access to copyrighted information. The paper highlighted that illegal Neighbouring right of copyrighted work is damaging to the rights of owners of copyrighted materials as it stifles creativity, innovation and development, and the introduction of the doctrine of ‘fair use’ is aimed at balancing the exclusive rights of copyright owners and access to information by all, in order not to harm scholarship. The paper argues that there is need to raise awareness about copyright law in order to discourage violations, thereby robbing copyrighted owners of the benefit of their labour.
Keywords: Copyright law, Neighbouring, Fair use, Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
1.1 Background of study
Copyright is one of the two branches of intellectual property law. The other branch relates to industrial property, chiefly inventions trademarks and industrial design. Items generally classified as intellectual property include literary an artistic works, films, computer programmes, inventions, designs and marks, etc. Copyright is a legal right that protects the owner of an intellectual property from being exploited. The law protects indiscriminate copying and distribution of an author's work without the permission of the author. Copyright law in Nigeria is governed by the Copyright Act 1988 with its amendments of 1992 and 1999 which is now re-codified in the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2010. The primary function of Copyright under the law is to protect from annexation the fruits of a person's work (Babafemi, 2007).
Neighbouring without permission is a form of copyright violation. The copyright law under the doctrine of fair use creates a legal exception. The law specifically states that the concept of fair use can be invoked for purposes of research, private use, criticism, or review of the reporting of current events. Reproduction of literary works by photographic and like means on a large scale is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Until the late 1960s, the usual means of obtaining multiple copies of textual matter was by carbon copying, and stencil duplicating (Bush & Dreyfuss 1979).
Odunowo (2002) asserts that copyright law protects the owner of property rights in literary and artistic works against those who adopt the exact form of words or arrangement employed by the author in the production of his work. Nigeria is a signatory to the Universal Copyright Convention 1952, the Berne Conventions of 1886 and 1971 for the protection of rights in literary, musical and artistic works and the Rome Convention of 1961 for the protection of performers, producers, broadcasting organizations (Asein, 2002). The aim of conventions is to enable countries give the same protection to the works of the nationals of other countries as they give to their nationals (Flint, 1979). This article looks at the history of copyright law in Nigeria, concepts of ‘copyright’, ‘Neighbouring’, and ‘fair use’ under the Nigerian copyright law.
1.2 Statement of problem
Over the past decade, the understanding of intellectual property and its economic benefits to the society has increased significantly. This is largely due to the expansion of research conducted across all disciplines. The greatest source and foundation of every civilization is its creativity, innovation and invention which will invariably boost the economy of a nation. Copyright is one of the fields of intellectual property dealing with creations of human intellect. Copyright protection exists from the moment a work is created in a fixed and tangible form of expression and it is original. 3It relates to literary and artistic works. The aim of such protection is ensuring that no one reaps the fruits of another man's labour without authorization.
Copyright protection encourages individual effort and invariably enriches the society. As the world experiences greater advancement in technology, more emphasis is now placed on innovative and knowledge based products. Nigeria, as a nation with huge creative capacity, has witnessed the gradual growth of her movie and music industries, which is beneficial to the country’s economy. This paper examines the legal framework for copyright protection in Nigeria, It examines terms for copyright protection, it traces the rationale for copyright protection, policy objectives of copyright protection, and it also discusses in details the sources of copyright laws which are Statute, case law, common law, international law and regulations. It also examines what constitutes infringement and availability of criminal and civil remedies
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The objective of the paper is to examine copyright law and Neighbouring right in Nigeria.
The study will specifically:
1. highlight the concept of copyright law in Nigeria.
2. discuss the history of copyright law in Nigeria.
3. examine Neighbouring right and the copyright law in Nigeria.
4. show the relevance of the doctrine of fair use in copyright law in Nigeria.
1.4 Research Approach and Methodology
1.4.1 Research Approach
This research employs the exploratory research approach, secondary sources will be used to undertake a critical assessment of the Copyright and Neighbouring right under the Nigerian Intellectual Property Law.
This approach enables the researcher to have a better understanding of the subject under investigation and to develop theories to test them. This approach is highly useful in social research and is critical for presenting fresh information about a study's point of view.
1.4.2 Data sources
Written records such as legal publications, letters, correspondence, documentaries, and newspapers are among the main sources. To supplement the other sources, oral interviews were performed.
Because certain material is not easily available online or in libraries, a combination of primary and secondary data sources will be beneficial in doing this study.
To acquire relevant resources for the study, this research relies heavily on archive materials. Field excursions will also be used to get essential information from the Enugu State House of Assembly.
Furthermore, this research relies on secondary sources such as books, journals, conference proceedings, and online sources, all of which should be investigated in order to improve this work.
1.4.3 Case study
The study's geographical area is the Nigerian Copy Rights Law.
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Item Type: Project Material | Size: 38 pages | Chapters: 1-5
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