Module Information

Module Identifier
LAM0520
Module Title
INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT LAW
Academic Year
2009/2010
Co-ordinator
Semester
Intended for use in future years

Course Delivery

Delivery Type Delivery length / details
Seminars / Tutorials 2 Hours. 10 x 2 hour seminars
 

Assessment

Assessment Type Assessment length / details Proportion
Semester Assessment Seminar Presentation:  20%
Semester Assessment Students may choose one of the following: 2 x 2500-3000 word essays, or 1x 5000-6000 word essay 1. 2 x 2500-3000 word essays. or 2. 1 x 5000-6000 word essay.  Essay:  80%

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

The aims and objectives of this course are a thorough understanding of copyright law and its enforcement both domestically and internationally. Students will become familiar with UK Copyright law which will provide the framework for undertaking a comparative analysis in respect of the copyright laws of many other countries. International Copyright conventions will be studied and detailed attention will be paid to the extent to which the laws of developing countries and their enforcement procedures will have to change to combat copyright infringement. The copyright laws in several jurisdictions will be examined, including for example, the USA, countries within Europe and within Asia. Students will be able to critically assess the copyright law that is currently in force in these countries and will be able to analyse the issues from both a practical and theoretical perspective.

Brief description

Issues relating to copyright increasingly demand for an international perspective to be taken. Piracy of goods is a major problem, with pirated goods, produced in breach of intellectual property rights, especially copyright, accounting for around 5% of world trade. The international community is attempting to counter this by harmonising laws and law enforcement procedures through international agreement and political pressure. This module considers copyright protection for authors, publishers, software houses and the sound recording industry; the public interest in the dissemination of information; and the copyright issues in global information systems such as the Internet.

Content

International Conventions, Treaties and Agreements.

UK Copyright Law ? key principles of the current legislative framework.

Copyright in Europe ? approaches to copyright regulation and enforcement in Europe.

Copyright in Asia ? an analysis of selected jurisdictions, with a particular focus on music piracy and technological advances.

Copyright in the U.S.A ? comparing and contrasting the Anglo-American approach with copyright laws in Europe and the Far East.

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 7