The main function of the Internet was initially free access to various kinds of information. However, over time, the need arises to protect texts, photos, drawings, or other material authored by a user of the World Wide Web. Today, copyright on the Internet and how to protect them are one of the most pressing issues.
Objects and subjects of law on the Internet
Law on the Internet is a rather complex and confusing area, which consists of different multi-level elements. The main objects and subjects of law on the World Wide Web include the following:
- Software Rights.
- The rights of web page owners to the content of the site, its programs, as well as articles, music and images.
- Provider rights to programs and databases.
- Copyright on the Internet of specific individuals who have created and posted texts, programs, music, videos, pictures or other material that other users actively use on online resources.
Unlike traditional forms of presentation of information by the author, the placement of materials on the Internet has its own characteristics. The fact is that as soon as an article or music becomes available in digital format, it can be viewed by an unlimited number of users around the world. It is simply physically impossible to follow all the processes in this situation. Almost any person can take a development or idea from public access, register rights to it and actually become the owner of those materials, the author of which is a completely different person. To avoid this situation, you should protect your right on the Internet. You can do this in many ways.
Setting copyright sign ©
This option is the simplest and most accessible for any user. To establish this sign, you do not need to go through additional registration or perform any other actions. As soon as the user uploads a photograph, article or other material that he made to the World Wide Web, he automatically becomes its author and has the right to set a copyright sign on any product of his work. You can put your name and year of publication next to the icon. This symbol and the right to use it were established in the middle of the last century at the World Geneva Conference on the issue of copyright. In order to get this character using a computer, hold the Alt key and type the following number combination on the digital part of the keyboard on the right - 0169.
The copyright mark has the following advantages.
- Officially makes it clear to everyone that this text or photo has an author.
- It allows you to declare your exclusive rights to the hosted facility.
- Provides the opportunity for the author to establish rules regarding the commercial or non-commercial use of his creations.
In this method, however, there is a significant minus. The copyright sign protects the creation of the author, but does not protect the idea, structure, concept, principle or other similar components of creativity. That is, if the author posted the original drawing, then the picture itself will be protected by a copyright icon, however, some innovation that is present in the work can be taken as a basis by other people. Accordingly, the original idea of the author can be used by other users. This icon should always be present at the works of the author, but should not be limited to one.
Internet copyright registration
The state does not register all materials that are posted on the network. A similar right on the Internet applies only to databases and programs. However, there is still a way to protect your texts, photographs, and drawings. Special legal organizations offer a service such as depositing author creations. After a simple procedure, a person receives an official document that confirms his rights to the text or image. Protection of rights on the Internet in this case will be quite effective and will allow you to easily resolve the dispute in court, if necessary. In addition, it is also a reliable support in the event that in the future a person needs international protection of his copyright.
Security features of the original software or database
Current legislation considers computer programs as a literary work, and databases as collections and objects of related rights. Unlike articles and figures, programs and databases do not need to be registered, you just need to correctly compose documents and mark your creation with a copyright symbol ©.
This procedure provides the following features.
- Protecting your intellectual property.
- It will not give the organization’s employees the opportunity to pick up its development from the author’s portal.
- Shows the priority of the author’s creation.
Copyright in such cases is valid throughout the life of a person and another 70 years after his death.
Protecting the name of a site or portal that acts as a media outlet
Registration of the portal as a media significantly increases the status of the website. In addition, this option has several advantages:
- The owner of the site and its employees can use all the rights that the legislation provides for the media.
- The procedure avoids liability for disseminating inaccurate data if it is an official quotation from others. Unregistered news sites and portals do not apply to these rules.
- Employees of the portal actually become journalists and are allowed to attend conferences, briefings, etc.
As for the cost of registration, it is almost the same as the price for processing the activities of a regular magazine or newspaper.
Brand Registration Process
You can talk about real copyright protection on the World Wide Web only after registering a site or portal in the form of a trademark by government organizations. Unlike other options for protecting your rights, this service allows you to get material compensation in case there is a violation of copyright in the Internet by other persons. The owner also gets the opportunity to sell rights to the site or domain and be protected from encroachment on his intellectual property.
Other protection methods
In addition to the above options, there are other ways that protect copyright on the Internet. A fairly common situation is the conclusion of an agreement with the authors of the site content. Any article or poem written by a copywriter is in fact its property. Even if the customer himself chose the subject of the order and paid for the content, the contractor can at any time claim his rights and demand compensation. In the case of the drafting of the contract, this problem disappears.
Law and ethics on the Internet are a fairly complex area that is still in its infancy. Despite this, there are many simple options that allow you to protect your rights to materials posted on the network, and every author should know them.