Copyright law of Oman

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Copyright in Oman is regulated by the Law for the Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights issued by Royal Decree No 65/2008 [1] which was later amended by Royal Decree No 132/2008. [2]

Contents

History

The first copyright law in Oman was passed in the year 1996 by Royal Decree No 47/1996, this law was later revamped in anticipation of Oman's membership to the WTO in 2000 when Royal Decree No 37/2000 issued the second copyright law of Oman, and then in fulfilment of Oman's prerequisites to the entry into a Free Trade Agreement with the U.S., [3] Royal Decree No 65/2008 issued the third and current Omani copyright law.

Oman Arab sultanate in Western Asia

Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is an Arab country on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. Its official religion is Islam.

World Trade Organization Intergovernmental trade organization

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, signed by 123 nations on 15 April 1994, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948. It is the largest international economic organization in the world.

The Omani copyright protects any original literary, artistic, and scientific work automatically upon their creation without the need to undertake any formalities irrespective of the value, kind, method of expression, or purpose for which the work was created.

Copyright formalities are legal requirements needed to obtain a copyright in a particular jurisdiction. Common copyright formalities include copyright registration, copyright renewal, copyright notice, and copyright deposit.

Article 2 of the Omani copyright law provides a wide definition of what can fall within the scope of copyright protection as it states that literary, artistic, and scientific works are protected irrespective of their value, kind, medium of expression, or purpose for creation. The same article provides an illustrative non-exhaustive list of subject matter explicitly included within the scope of protection that includes all forms of literary and artistic work in addition to computer software and databases. Article 2 also specifies that the 'title' of a work can attract copyright protection this title is original.

Article 4 of the law provides that the following are not to be protected by copyright:

Economic rights

The Omani law grants the owner of the copyright over a work the following exclusive economic rights: [4]

Moral rights

Moral rights under the Omani copyright law cannot be waived or disposed of. The moral rights available under Omani law are the right of the author for attribution as the author of the work in the manner of his choice and the right of the author to object to any distortion, mutilation, modification, or other derogatory action in relation to his work that could prejudice the author's honor or reputation. [5]

Free uses

The Omani copyright law provides a number of exceptions that allow the public to perform the following acts in relation to any copyright work without the need to seek the permission of the copyright owner as long as the author is attributed, the use does not conflict with the normal exhaustion of the work, and the use does not unreasonably detriment the interests of the author: [6]

Limitations and exceptions to copyright are provisions, in local copyright law or Berne Convention, which allow for copyrighted works to be used without a license from the copyright owner.

  1. Reproducing segments of the work for illustration, review, or criticism.
  2. Using the work at gathering within the family domain.
  3. Using the work for nonprofit educational purposes for students in the classroom.
  4. Reproducing one copy of the work by libraries or other nonprofit organizations to provide a person with a copy for research or to create an archival copy of the work.
  5. Reproducing, broadcasting, or communicating to the public segments of daily news by the press.
  6. Reproducing one copy of a software program to enable the proper use of the software, create a backup copy, or to adapt the software to work on a specific computer.
  7. Performing the work in public at religious ceremonies.
  8. Performing the work for nonprofit face-to-face teaching in the classroom.
  9. Creating temporary copies of the work by broadcasting agencies to use in its programs.

The duration of the copyright term in Oman can be summarized in the following table: [7]

WorkDuration
Any work other than audio-visual, collective, applied art works made by a single known authorThe lifetime of the author plus 70 years starting from the beginning of the year following the death of the author
Any work other than audio-visual, collective, applied art works made by more than one authorThe lifetime of all the authors plus 70 years starting from the beginning of the year following the death of the last surviving author
Published work other than audio-visual, collective, applied art works made by an anonymous author90 years from the beginning of the year following the publication of the work
Unpublished work other than audio-visual, collective, applied art works made by an anonymous author120 years from the beginning of the year following the completion of the work
Published audio-visual, collective, applied art works90 years from the beginning of the year following the publication of the work
Unpublished audio-visual and collective, applied art works120 years from the beginning of the year following the completion of the work

A work is considered unpublished under the Omani copyright law if it does not get published within 25 years from the date of creation of the work. [8]

Neighboring rights

In addition to copyright protection, the Omani copyright law provides additional protection for performances, sound recordings, and broadcasts.

Performers' rights

Performances have the following exclusive economic rights: [9]

  1. Broadcasting and communicating to the public their unfixed performance.
  2. Fixing their performance in any form.
  3. Exploiting the unfixed performance in any way.
  4. Making available to the public reproductions of the fixed performance.
  5. Renting reproductions of the fixed performance for commercial purposes.
  6. Broadcasting and communicating to the public the fixed performance.
  7. Reproducing the fixed performance.

The duration of the economic rights of performers lasts for 95 years starting from the year following the publication of the fixed performance, or 120 years starting from the year following the completion of the performance if the performance is not published within 25 years after its creation. [10]

In addition to these economic rights, performers have moral rights identical to those of copyright owners which cannot be waived, are perpetual, and are independent of the economic rights. [11]

Sound recordings producers' rights

Producers of sound recordings have the following exclusive economic rights: [12]

  1. Exploiting their sound recordings in any way including reproduction and rental.
  2. Making the sound recordings available to the public.
  3. Broadcasting and communicating the public their sound recordings.

The duration of the economic rights of the producers of sound recordings lasts for 95 years starting from the year following the publication of the sound recording, or 120 years starting from the year following the completion of the sound recording if the sound recording is not published within 25 years after its creation. [13]

Broadcasters' rights

Broadcasting authorities have the following exclusive economic rights: [14]

  1. Fixing, reproducing, broadcasting, re-broadcasting, and communicating to the public the broadcasting programs.
  2. Communicating to the public the televised recording of its programs without prior written license.
  3. Recording, reproducing, renting, re-broadcasting, making available to the public, and communicating to the public.

The duration of the economic rights of broadcasters lasts for 20 years from the year following the year of the first broadcast of a broadcasting program. [15]

Effective technological measures and rights management information

In addition to copyright protection, the Omani copyright law also protects effective technical measures and rights management information applied to copyright works by prohibiting the following: [16]

  1. Circumventing any effective technological measure.
  2. Dealing with any means, products, or components used for circumventing effective technological measures.
  3. Removing or altering rights management information, distributing this info with the knowledge of its alteration, and distributing copies of any work for which rights management information has been altered or removed.
  4. Dealing with any system or mechanism for decoding an encrypted program-carrying satellite signal.
  5. Receiving or distributing an illegally decoded program-carrying satellite signal.

Oman is a member of the following copyright treaties: [17]

Related Research Articles

The copyright law of the European Union consists of a number of directives, which the member states are obliged to enact into their national laws, as interpreted by the decisions of the European Court of Justice. Directives of the EU are passed to harmonise the laws of European Union member states. The most recent proposal is the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market. Copyright in the Union is furthermore dependent on international conventions to which the European Union is a member (such as the TRIPS Agreement and conventions to which all Member States are parties. The remaining issues are part of the national law of the member states.

The copyright law of Canada governs the legally enforceable rights to creative and artistic works under the laws of Canada. Canada passed its first colonial copyright statute in 1832 but was subject to imperial copyright law established by Britain until 1921. Current copyright law was established by the Copyright Act of Canada which was first passed in 1921 and substantially amended in 1988, 1997, and 2012. All powers to legislate copyright law are in the jurisdiction of the Parliament of Canada by virtue of section 91(23) of the Constitution Act, 1867.

The Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations was accepted by members of BIRPI, the predecessor to the modern World Intellectual Property Organization, on 26 October 1961. The agreement extended copyright protection for the first time from the author of a work to the creators and owners of particular, physical manifestations of intellectual property, such as audiocassettes or videocassettes.

Spanish copyright law governs copyright, that is the rights of authors of literary, artistic or scientific works, in Spain. It was first instituted by the Law of 10 January 1879, and, in its origins, was influenced by French copyright law and by the movement led by Victor Hugo for the international protection of literary and artistic works. As of 2006, the principal dispositions are contained in Book One of the Intellectual Property Law of 11 November 1987 as modified. A consolidated version of this law was approved by Royal Legislative Decree 1/1996 of 12 April 1996: unless otherwise stated, all references are to this law.

"Author's rights" is a term frequently used in connection with laws about intellectual property.

In copyright law, related rights are the rights of a creative work not connected with the work's actual author. It is used in opposition to the term "authors' rights". Neighbouring rights is a more literal translation of the original French droits voisins. Both authors' rights and related rights are copyrights in the sense of English or U.S. law.

Copyright law in Azerbaijan governs copyright in Azerbaijan. The status of copyright law and its protection is regulated by the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan signed in 1996. The Copyright law and Related Rights regulates the relations that arise while creating or using scientific and literary works, as well as works of art. According to this law, adjacent rights to performances, phonograms, and the transfer of broadcasting and cable broadcasting organizations are also streamlined. The structure of the Law was amended in 2005, 2010 and 2013.

The current Copyright law of the Russian Federation is codified in part IV of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. It entered in force on January 1, 2008.

Berne Convention 1880s international copyright treaty adopted by 160+ countriesee

The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, is an international agreement governing copyright, which was first accepted in Berne, Switzerland, in 1886.

Japanese copyright laws consist of two parts: "Author's Rights" and "Neighbouring Rights". As such, "copyright" is a convenient collective term rather than a single concept in Japan. Japan was a party to the original Berne convention in 1899, so its copyright law is in sync with most international regulations. The convention protected copyrighted works for 50 years after the author's death. However, in 2004 Japan extended the copyright term to 70 years for cinematographic works. At the end of 2018, as a result of the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, the 70 year term was applied to all works. This new term is not applied retroactively; works that had entered the public domain between 1999 and 2018 by expiration would remain in the public domain.

The copyright law of New Zealand is covered by the Copyright Act 1994 and subsequent amendments. It is administered by Business Law Policy Unit of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). In June 2017, a review of the existing legislation was announced.

The copyright law of Chile is governed by Law No. 17,336, on Intellectual Property of October 2 of 1970 and subsequent amendments. It was implemented in the Decree No. 1122 of the Ministry of Education of Chile on May 17 of 1971.

Iran is a member of the WIPO since 2001 and has acceded to several WIPO intellectual property treaties. Iran joined the Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property in 1959. In December 2003 Iran became a party to the Madrid Agreement and the Madrid Protocol for the International Registration of Marks. In 2005 Iran joined the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, which ensures the protection of geographical names associated with products. As at February 2008 Iran had yet to accede to The Hague Agreement for the Protection of Industrial Designs.

Provisions related to Italian copyright law are found in Law no. 633 of 22 April 1941. Certain fundamental provisions are also found in the Italian Civil Code of 1942, Arts. 2575–2583.

Registered trademarks in Oman are governed by the Industrial Property Law issued by Royal Decree No 67/2008 which was later amended by Royal Decree No 131/2008.

Copyright law in Syria is regulated by the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Law issued by Legislative Decree No. 62 of 2013. The Syrian Ministry of Culture, through its Copyright Office, is generally in charge of proposing copyright legislation to Parliament.

Copyright Act of Ghana

The Copyright Act is the legal framework that protects the use of an individual's work once the idea has been physically expressed. It is a form of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software and architecture. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed. Ghana's current copyright law is Act 690 issued by the Parliament of the Republic of Ghana. It was enacted on May 17, 2005 and replaced Parliament's Act No. 110, the country's previous Copyright law from 1985. The Copyright law affords protection to a variety of works, grants Copyright holders rights to their work and defines the duration of that Copyright protection.

The Copyright law of El Salvador is legal rights to creative and artistic works under the laws of El Salvador. It was implemented in the Decree No. 604 of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador on 16 of August 1993. This law aims to protect the economic and moral rights of Salvadoran authors and foreigners residing in El Salvador, granted by the mere fact of creating works that are literary, artistic and scientific.

References

  1. ↑ "Law For the Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights" (PDF). Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Legal Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 May 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  2. ↑ "Amendment of the Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights" (PDF). Royal Decree 132/2008. Ministry of Legal Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 May 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  3. ↑ "Oman-United States Free Trade Agreement". Office of the United States Trade Representative. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  4. ↑ "Article 6 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  5. ↑ "Article 5 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  6. ↑ "Article 20 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  7. ↑ "Articles 26-30 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  8. ↑ "Articles 28,29, and 30 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
  9. ↑ "Article 16 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  10. ↑ "Article 31 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  11. ↑ "Article 15 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  12. ↑ "Article 17 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  13. ↑ "Article 32 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  14. ↑ "Article 18 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  15. ↑ "Article 33 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO.
  16. ↑ "Article 40 of The Law For The Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights". Royal Decree 65/2008. WIPO. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
  17. ↑ "Oman: IP Laws and Treaties". WIPO. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
  18. ↑ Royal Decree No. 63/98
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