ARTICLE I. — Scope and beneficiaries of copyright
SEC. 5. Copyright shall consist in the exclusive
right;
To print, reprint, publish, copy, distribute,
multiply, sell, and make photographs, photo-engravings, and pictorial
illustrations of the works;
To make any translation or other version or extracts or
arrangements or adaptations thereof; to dramatize it if it be a
non-dramatic work; to convert it into a non-dramatic work if it be a
drama; to complete or execute it if it be a model or design;
To exhibit, perform, represent, produce, or reproduce the
work in any manner or by any method whatever for profit or otherwise; if
not reproduced in copies for sale, to sell any manuscripts or any
records whatsoever thereof;
To make any other use or disposition of the work consistent
with the laws of the land.
SEC. 6. The creator or his heirs or assigns shall
own the copyright in any of the works mentioned in Section 2 of this
Decree. If the works is produced by two or more persons, the copyright
shall belong to them jointly and their respective rights thereto shall
be governed by the Rules of the Civil Code on co-ownership.
If the work in which copyright subsists was made during and in the
course of the employment of the creator, the copyright shall belong to:
The employee, if the creation of the object of copyright is not a
part of his regular duties even if the employee uses the time,
facilities and materials of the employer.
The employer, if the work is the result of the performance
of his regularly assigned duties, unless there is an agreement, express
or implied to the contrary.
Where the work is commissioned by a person who is not the employer of
the creator and who pays or agrees to pay for it and the work is made
in pursuance of the commission, the person who so commissioned the work
shall have ownership of it but the copyright thereto shall belong in
joint ownership to him and the creator, unless there is a stipulation to
the contrary.
The creators of a cinematographic or analogous work are the producer,
the author of the scenario, the composer of the music, the film
director, the photographic director, and the author, of the work
adapted. However subject to contrary or other stipulation among the
creators, the producer shall exercise the copyright to an extent
required for the exhibition of the work in any manner, except for the
right to collect performing fees for the musical compositions, with or
without words, which may be incorporated into the work.
The copyright in letters shall belong to the writer, subject to the
provisions of Article 723 of the Civil Code.
SEC. 7. For purposes of this Decree, articles and
other writings published without the names of the authors or under
pseudonyms are considered as the property of the publishers, unless the
contrary appears.
SEC. 8. The works referred to in subsections (P) and
(O) of Section 2 of this Decree shall, when produced with the consent
of the creator or proprietor of the original works on which they are
based, be protected as new works; however, such new works shall not
affect the force of any subsisting copyright upon the original works
employed or any part thereof, or be construed to imply an exclusive
right to such use of the original works, or to secure or extend
copyright in such original works.
SEC. 9. No copy shall subsist in any work of the
Government of the Philippines. However, prior approval of the government
agency or office wherein the work is created shall be necessary for
exploitation of such work for profit. Such agency or office may, among
other things, impose as a condition the payment of royalties. No prior
approval or condition shall be required for the use for any purpose of
statutes, rules and regulations, and speeches, lectures, sermons,
addresses, and dissertations pronounced, read or rendered in courts of
justice before administrative agencies, in deliberative assemblies, and
in meetings of character.
A "Work of the Government of the Philippines" is a work created by an
officer or employee of the Philippine Government or any of its
subdivisions and instrumentalities, including government-owned or
controlled corporations as a part of his regularly prescribed official
duties.
Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, the Government is not
precluded from receiving and holding copyrights transferred to it by
assignment, bequest or otherwise; nor shall publication or republication
by the Government in a public document of any work in which copyright
is subsisting be taken to cause any abridgement or annulment of the
copyright or to authorize any use or appropriation of such work without
the consent of the copyright proprietor.
ARTICLE II. — Limitations on copyright
SEC. 10. When a work has been lawfully made
accessible to the public, the author shall not be entitled to prohibit:
Its recitation or performance (A) if done privately and free of
charge; or (B) if made for strictly charitable or religious institution
or society;
Reproductions, translations and adaptations thereof destined
exclusively for personal and private use;
SEC. 11. To an extend compatible with fair practice
and justified by the scientific, critical, informatory or educational
purpose, it shall be permissible to make quotations or excerpts from a
work already lawfully made accessible to the public. Such quotations may
be utilized in their original form or translation.
News items, editorials, and articles on current political, social,
economic, scientific or religious topic may be reproduced by the press
or broadcast, unless they contain or are accompanied by a notice that
their reproduction or publication is reserved. In case of musical works,
parts of little extent may also be reproduced.
Quotations and excerpts as well as reproductions shall always be
accompanied by an acknowledgment of the source and name of the author,
if his name appears thereon.
SEC. 12. In reports of a current event by means of
photography, cinematography or broadcasting, literary, scientific or
artistic works which can be seen or heard in the course of said event
may be reproduced and communicated to the public to the extent necessary
for the purpose.
SEC. 13. Libraries, public archives and museums have
the right, subject to the conditions specified in the succeeding
paragraphs, to produce for purposes of their activities, by photographic
means, and without the consent of the creator or proprietor, copies of a
literary or artistic work.
Material forming part of the collections mentioned in the preceding
paragraph which, by reason of their fragile character or rarity, cannot
be lent to users in its original form, may be reproduced by photography
for the purpose of loans. Nevertheless, except in cases where special
reasons justify it, not more than two copies may be made.
It is equally permissible to make, by means of photography,
reproductions of isolated articles contained in composite works, as well
as brief portions of other published works, in order to supply them,
when this is considered expedient, to persons requesting their loan for
purposes of research or study, instead of lending the volumes or
booklets which contain them. Each person seeking loan may only receive
one copy of each article or each portion of a work.
When a copy of a work is found to be incomplete) the missing portions
may be reproduced by means of photography, provided they only
constitute a minor portion of the total work. Nevertheless, it shall not
be permitted to produce a volume of a work published in several volumes
or to produce missing tomes or parts of magazines or similar works,
unless the volume, tome or part is out of stock with booksellers, the
printing house and the publisher.
Every library which, by law, is entitled to receive one or two copies
of a printed work shall be entitled, when special reasons so require,
to reproduce, by means of photography or process analogous to
photography, a copy of a published work, the acquisition of which is
considered necessary for the collections of the library, but which is
out of stock with booksellers, the printing house and the publisher.
A work belonging to the collections mentioned in the first paragraph
of this section which has not been disseminated may not be reproduced or
published without the consent of the creator or proprietor. However,
such work may be reproduced for purposes of preservation.
SEC. 14. If, after the expiration of five years from
the date of the first publication of a writing, a translation of such
writing has not been published in the national or other local language,
as the case may be, by the owner of the right of translation or with his
authorization, any citizen may obtain a non-exclusive license from the
Director of the National Library, to translate the work and publish the
work so translated in the national or other local language in which it
has not been published: Provided, That such citizen establishes
either that he has requested, and been denied, authorization by the
proprietor of the right to make and publish the translation, or that,
after due diligence on his part, he was unable to find the owner of the
right. A license may also be granted on the same conditions if all
previous editions of a translation in such language are out of print. In
both cases the terms and conditions of the license, including the
royalties of the author or proprietor of the original work, shall be
stated therein.
If the owner of the right of translation cannot be found, then the
applicant for a license shall send copies of his application to the
publisher whose name appears on the work and, if the nationality of the
owner of the right of translation is known, to the diplomatic or
consular representative of the state of which such owner is a national,
or to the organization which may have been designated by the government
of that state. The license shall not be granted before the expiration of
two months from the date of the dispatch of the copies of the
application. Neither shall it be granted when the author has withdrawn
from circulation all copies of the work.
The original title and the name of the author of the work shall be
printed on all copies of the published translation.
ARTICLE III. — Transfer of work and copyright
SEC. 15. The copyright may, by gift, inheritance or
otherwise, be transferred or assigned in whole or in part. Such transfer
or assignment shall entitle the transferee or assignee to all the
rights and remedies which the transferer or assignor had with respect to
the copyright.
The copyright is not deemed transferred or assigned inter vivos
in whole or in part, unless there is a written indication that such is
the intention.
The submission of a literary, photographic or artistic work to a
newspaper, magazine or periodical for publication shall constitute only a
license to make a single publication unless a greater right is
expressly granted.
SEC. 16. The copyright is distinct from the property
in the material object subject to it. Consequently, the transfer or
assignment of the copyright shall not itself constitute a transfer of
the material object. Nor shall a transfer or assignment of the sole copy
or of one or several copies of the work imply transfer or assignment of
the copyright.
SEC. 17. An assignment or transfer inter vivos, or a
license, must be in writing, acknowledged before a notary public or
other officer authorized to administer oaths or perform notarial acts
and certified under the hand and seal of the notary or other officer.
This section and Section 19 shall not apply to cases covered by the
last paragraph of Section 15 of this Decree.
SEC. 18. If two or more persons jointly own a
copyright or any part thereof, neither of the owners shall be entitled
to grant licenses without the consent of the other owner or owners.
SEC. 19. Every assignment, license or other
instrument relating to any right, title or interest in a copyright and
to the work subject to it shall be filed in duplicate with the National
Library upon payment of the prescribed fee for registration in books and
records kept for the purpose. Upon recording a copy of the instrument
shall be returned to the sender with a notation of the fact of record.
Notice of the record shall be published in the Official Gazette.
Such instruments shall be void as against any subsequent purchaser or
mortgagee for a valuable consideration and without notice unless it is
recorded in the library prior to the subsequent purchase or mortgage.
SEC. 20. When the creator of a work in which
copyright is subsisting dies, it shall be the duty of his heirs or
assigns to file with the National Library for registration a written
notice under oath of the date of the creator's death. Until this is
complied with, the limitation of remedies established in Section 26 of
this Decree shall be enforced.
ARTICLE IV. — Duration of copyright
SEC. 21. The copyright conferred by this Decree
shall endure the lifetime of the creator and for fifty years after his
death. In case of works of joint creation, the period of fifty years
shall be counted from the death of the last surviving co-creator.
SEC. 22. In case of anonymous and pseudonymous
works, the copyright shall last until the end of fifty years following
the date of their first publication. However, when the pseudonym adopted
by the author leaves no doubt as to his identity, or if the author of
an anonymous or pseudonymous work discloses his identity during the
period mentioned in this section, the term of the protection shall be
that fixed in the next preceding section.
SEC. 23. In the case of posthumous works which do
not fall within the categories of the works referred to in the next two
preceding sections, the term of protection afforded to the heirs or
assignees of the creator shall end at the expiration of fifty years
after his death.
SEC. 24. Irrespective of the provisions of the
foregoing sections of this article, the term shall be thirty years in
the case of: (A) periodicals and newspapers, provided that
material contained therein in which an independent copyright may be
deemed to subsist shall be accorded the length of protection appropriate
to it; (B) works of applied art; (C) cinematographic or photographic
works as well as those produced by a process analogous to cinematography
or photography or any process for making audio-visual recordings.
SEC. 25. The term of protection subsequent to the
death of the creator provided in Sections 21 and 23 and the
terms provided in Sections 22 and 24 shall run from the date of
his death or of publication, but such terms shall always be deemed to
begin on the first day of January of the year following the event which
gives rise to them.
ARTICLE V. — Deposit and notice
SEC. 26. After the first public dissemination or
performance by authority of the copyright owner of a work falling under
subsections (A), (B), (C) and (D) of Section 2 of this Decree, there
shall, within three weeks, be registered and deposited with the National
Library, by personal delivery or by registered mail, two complete
copies or reproductions of the work in such form as the Director of said
library may prescribe. A certificate of registration and deposit for
which the prescribed fee shall be collected. If, within three weeks
after receipt by the copyright owner of a written demand from the
Director for such deposit, the required copies or reproductions are not
delivered and the fee is not paid, the copyright owner shall be liable
to pay a fine equivalent to the required fee per month of delay and to
pay to the National Library the amount of the retail price of the best
edition of the work.
With or without a demand from the Director, a copyright owner who has
not made such deposit shall not be entitled to recover damages in an
infringement suit and shall be limited to the other remedies specified
in Section 23 of this Decree.
SEC. 27. Each copy of a work published or offered
for sale shall contain a notice bearing the name of the copyright owner,
the year of its first publication, and in copies produced after the
creator's death, the year of such death.
Failure to comply with the requirements of this section shall result
in the limitation of remedies established in the next preceding section.
ARTICLE VI. — Infringement
SEC. 28. Any person infringing a copyright shall be
liable:
To an injunction restraining such
infringement;
To pay to the copyright proprietor or his assigns or heirs
such actual damages as he may have due to the infringement as well as
the profits the infringor may have made due to such infringement, and in
proving profits the plaintiff shall be required to prove sales only and
the defendant shall be required to prove every element of cost which he
claims, or, in lieu of actual damages and profits, such damage which to
the court shall appear to be just and which shall not be less than the
sum of One Thousand Pesos, and shall not be regarded as penalty;
To deliver under oath, for impounding during the pendency of
the action, upon such terms and conditions as the court may prescribe,
all articles alleged to infringe a copyright;
To deliver under oath for destruction all infringing copies or
devices, as well as all plates, molds, or other means for making such
infringing copies as the court may order;
To such other terms and conditions, including the payment of
moral and exemplary damages, which the court may deem proper, wise and
equitable.
SEC. 29. Any person infringing any copyright secured
by this Decree or aiding or abetting such infringement shall be deemed
guilty of a crime punishable by imprisonment not exceeding one year or
by fine not less than Two Hundred Pesos nor more than Two Thousand Pesos
or both, in the discretion of the court.
SEC. 30. Unless authorized by the copyright
proprietor concerned, importation into the Philippines of any piratical
copies or likeness of any work in which Philippine copyright subsists is
prohibited, except when imported under the following circumstances:
First. When copies of the work are not available in the
Philippines and —
Not more than one copy at one time is imported
for strictly individual use only, or
The importation is by authority of and for the use of the
Philippine Government; or
The importation, consisting of not more than three such copies
or likenesses in any one invoice, is not for sale but for the use only
of any religious, charitable, or educational society or institution duly
incorporated or registered, or is for the encouragement of the fine
arts, or for any state school, college, university, or free public
library in the Philippines.
Second. When such copies form parts of libraries and
personal baggage belonging to persons or families arriving from foreign
countries and arc not intended for sale provided such copies do
not exceed three.
Copies imported as allowed by this section may not lawfully be used
in any way to violate the rights of the proprietor of Philippine
copyright or annul or limit the protection secured by this Decree, and
such unlawful use shall be deemed an infringement and shall be
punishable as such without prejudice to the proprietor's right of
action.
The Commissioner of Customs, subject to the approval of the Secretary
of Finance, is hereby empowered to make rules and regulations for
preventing the importation of articles the importation of which is
prohibited under this section and for seizing and condemning and
disposing of the same in case they are discovered after they have been
imported.
Source: Supreme Court E-Library, Republic of the Philippines. Philippine laws are public documents (works of the government).
