Investigating Civil Liability under Copyright Law

Copyright: It is a subset of literary and artistic property, and a branch of intellectual property, and refers to any creative endeavor that gives its holder the right to exercise his will in reproducing and benefiting from its material works. Copyright is also a set of exclusive rights granted to the creator of a new and unique work, including rights such as republishing, copying, and copying, and for a fixed period after the death of the owner of the work. His family realizes that the right to copy and publish it is one of the prerequisites for enjoying the benefits of the work. Infringement of copyright, in addition to depriving the owner of material benefits, causes the loss of the spirit of creativity and the instability of the culture of society. It has changed a lot along with the economic, industrial and cultural developments of human societies. This paper will consider questions around the reform of copyright law, and how they are increasingly being framed by the challenges of the digital economy. It discusses the review of copyright and the digital economy being undertaken by the Australian Law Reform Commission, with particular reference to the costs and benefits of copyright law to consumers and creative producers. We argue that there is a pressing need to develop fair copyright rules that encourage investment in the digital economy, allow widespread dissemination of knowledge through society, and support the innovative reuse of copyright works. To better align copyright law with these goals, we recommend that Australia introduce an open ended ‘fair use’ style copyright exception, and encourage the development of a digital copyright exchange of the sort discussed in the UK by the Hargreaves and Hooper Reports.