PROTECT MY BRAIN CHILD: COPYRIGHT PROTECTION.  

The World Trade Ogranization (WTO) defines intellectual property right as “the rights given to persons over the creation of their minds. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creation for a certain period of time”. This right is basically divided into the following categories: Copyrights, Trademark, Patent, Industrial Design and Trade Secrets. For the purpose of this article, I would be majoring on “Copyright”. Copyright is the exclusive right of authors and creators of works such as books, songs, movies, content concepts, designs, images, painting, computer programs, and related few to their work.

So, copyright would mean that only the original creators (known as the authors) and anyone they so authorize can make use of the work.

So, when a script writer writes a story independently from his/her mind, that script writer automatically has copyright over that piece of work. Same goes to a song writer, a content developer, a skit creator, a designer, etc. The originality of that work is what counts the most.

The sole purpose of copyright protection is to reward brain work and originality. I mean it would be more than painful for someone to rack his/her brain to come up with a design, a content, a story, or a song, only for someone, by some means got a wind of it to use it without permission and amass wealth from it.

DOES A WORK NEED TO BE REGISTERED BEFORE IT CAN BE COPYRIGHT?

The answer to this question is NO. For a work to have the protection of copyright, two major things must be established, and they are (i) it must be original and (ii) it must be expressed in a form (in writing or musical recording etc)

The two must go hand in hand. If you have an idea (an original one), and you tell it by word of mouth to someone else who then makes use of it, then I am sorry there is no copyright protection here. It must be expressed. From the moment a work is created independently, the copyright of the original creator starts counting. No one else is authorized to use it without the consent of the creator.

I saw a tweet on the 4^th day of January, 2023, of a tweeter handler complaining that the script she had written last had been shot by a popular person (probably movie producer) without her consent. According to her, she had intended to sell the script to the person, but being that she was not comfortable with the offer (probably the amount the producer was willing to pay), she must have declined, only to find out that it was still shot.

I do not know if there is truth to her allegations or not, and I am not here to dissect her story. I am basically here to tell you how offer and acceptance works in the law of contract. I will also be telling you what happens when an offer is rejected, and how to avoid your work being stolen by evil forces.

Like I said earlier, the owner of a copyright can decide to authorize another person to make use of their work. One of the ways to do this is by selling off the right to the third party. This is where the Law of contract comes in, to be precise, the principle of offer and acceptance. For a contract to be said to have taken place, an offer must have been made, and the said offer must be accepted by the other party. Once the offer is not accepted for any reason, even if it is accepted with conditions, then there is no contract at all.

So, when this tweeter said that she intended to sell her original story to this director, it means there was an offer at a point, there was however no acceptance. When acceptance fails, everyone goes back to status quo. It means she remains the owner of the copyright, and the only one entitled to use it. I would not know why the producer went ahead to display the work, but I know that the law is always ready to take its full course.

The tweeter can take legal action against this popular person at the Federal High Court and seek for damages for the infringement of her copyright, she can also ask the court to order the infringer to remit all profits made from her work. It is her work after all. I trust the tweeter would get justice.

HOW DO YOU AVOID SITUATION LIKE THESE?

The truth be told, people will always steal people’s work. Do not be naïve about this. The first thing you can do to avoid a situation like this, is to get a lawyer. This should actually be your first port of call. Get a lawyer at the point where you intend to share the work with anybody. Your lawyer can prepare a document (a Non-Disclosure Agreement) ensuring that your work is not stolen by the person who you so trust, or who you intend to sell to should the offer fail.

Another thing to do is to register that work at the Nigerian Copyright Commission. Your lawyer can also do this for you. Note: you do not have to register it before you enjoy the protection of copyright, but sometimes registration gives you an upper hand. I mean, imagine that the tweeter had registered that story, only to see it on display. The registration would have made her lawyer’s work way easier right now.

Be smart. Protect your brain child.