Intellectual Property and the Ownership of Research Professor Fiona Macmillan

Scope of Intellectual Property Protection Copyright: literary works, dramatic works, musical works, artistic works, films, sound recordings, broadcasts, published editions, performances Patents: “inventions” displaying novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability Confidential information: eg trade secrets, technical information

Key Features of Intellectual Property Limited monopoly Intangible property Non-rivalrous and non-wasteable qualities Ownership Assignment and licensing

Introduction to Copyright and Moral Rights Subject matter: literary works (including table and compilations and computer programmes, cf Database Right), dramatic works, musical works, artistic works (including drawings, diagrammes, plans, buildings, works of artistic craftsmanship), films, sound recordings, broadcasts, published editions, performances

Automatic protection: no registration Idea/expression dichotomy Relevance of originality Independent creation

Ownership: role of the author; contractual variation; works produced in the course of employment Duration: usually the author’s life plus 70 years; 50 years for computer-generated works, sound recordings and broadcasts; 25 years for typographical arrangements of published editions

Infringement: Doing, without the license of the owner, any of the following acts in relation to a substantial part of the work: copying issuing to the public renting or lending to the public performing in public broadcasting making available to the public adapting (including translating)

Exceptions/defences: eg Exceptions/defences: eg. fair dealing for research and private study; fair dealing for criticism and review Interface between breach of copyright and plagiarism?

Moral Rights Range of rights: right of paternity, right of integrity, right against false attribution, right of privacy in certain photographs and films Owned by the author and may be waived but not assigned Usually last for the period of copyright protection

Patents Scope of right: stops others from making, using, selling, distributing the invention or the means of making the invention for 20 years from the date of grant Registered right: expense; delay; regime for medical applications

Right to apply for registration: inventor; inventor’s employer Requirements for registrability: novelty inventive step capacity for industrial application not specifically excluded from patentability: note especially EU Directive 98/44 on legal protection of biological inventions

Specification and claims: full disclosure requirement Infringement: relationship to claims; signpost rather than fencepost approach to construction; colourable evasions of the monopoly right are avoided Defences: private non-commercial use experimental use

Breach of confidence Elements: information with the quality of confidence conveyed in circumstances importing an obligation of confidence unauthorised use

Birkbeck’s Intellectual Property Code (2005) Applies to staff and students Disclaims rights in copyright material, subject to a non-exclusive royalty free right to use/adapt teaching materials for teaching or for commercial purposes Imposes strict regime with respect to attribution of authorship in relation to teaching materials

College has first right of refusal in relation to registered rights Establishes a scheme for the distribution of benefits from commercial exploitation: £000 Generator College School <50 75% 15% 10% >50 50% 25%