Licensing contracts usually apply to the terms between the owner and the licensee of copyrighted material. The increased use of the Internet has changed the way we deal with licensing contracts in recent years. However, the basic principles limiting exclusive rights are still the same. The fair use and first use doctrines are important to understand.
The fair use doctrine allows limited use of copyrighted material for things such as criticism, commentary, research and education. The doctrine takes into account whether the material is used for profit or for educational purposes. Factual writing can be used more freely than fiction writing, which is of a higher creative nature. In addition, the doctrine pays attention to the amount of the material used and whether or not its use takes away from the potential profits of the copyright owner. The fair use doctrine is often used as a defense to copyright infringement.
The first use doctrine also limits the exclusive right of a copyrighted material. The owner of the copy can resell or dispose of the material without the consent of the original owner. For example, an artist owns the copyright of a painting, but an art collector owns the painting itself. The art collector can sell the painting to a third party but he does not have the right to make copies of the painting.
Summary of Articles 32-35 of the Copyright Law Dealing with Licensing Contracts
Article 32 states that copyright contracts and the license for using the copyrighted work must be in writing except for when works are published by newspapers or periodicals. Article 33 states that unless the law states otherwise, rights to copyrighted work shall be non-exclusive.
Article 34 states that the National Copyright Administration is responsible for providing standard forms of various copyright licensing contracts. Article 35 says that any person who has obtained exclusive right to a material can prevent any other person from using the material in the same way.
