-- JonathanMo - 14 Sep 2015

Assignment of copyright

An assignment is a transfer of the exploitation rights of copyright. It enables the creator of an original work to sell or transfer their copyright in all or in part to another individual or corporation.

When a right is assigned the assignor has no power to control the way the work is exploited unless by contract with the assignee. Under section 196(1) of the CA 'Copyright is personal property and, subject to this section, is transmissible by assignment, by will and by devolution by operation of law'. An assignment may be unlimited, giving the purchaser rights for all purposes throughout the entire life of the copyright. An assignment may be limited, that is apply only in relation to a limited part of the rights under copyright [CA s.196(2)], or to a period of time, or to a specific purpose, or to a certain region or territory. The assignment (whether total or partial) does not have effect unless it is in writing signed by or on behalf of the assignor [CA s.196(3)]. It is possible to make an agreement in relation to future copyright to assign such copyright to another person [CA s.197].

It is possible to make an agreement to assign the copyright in works not yet created. For example, an aspiring musician may make an agreement with a record company to assign the copyright in all works they will create in the next five years. Such assignments should be avoided because they are rarely made in the interests of the creator. Aboriginal painter Albert Namatjira assigned all his copyrights in his work to a publishing company and, as a consequence, his surviving family does not benefit from the income his work generates. Note that there is the possibility that inequitable or unfair assignments of copyright may be treated as being in restraint of trade. In the United States, artists have successfully taken record companies to court over this issue.