-- JonathanMo - 14 Sep 2015

How Long Does Copyright Protection Last?

Prior to the 2004 US-Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the general term of copyright protection for 'works' was the life of the author plus 50 years; for other subject matter it was 25 years [CA s.33].

The general term has since been increased to 70 years, as an outcome of the FTA, although there a still a few exceptions to this: see the following table.

Subject Matter	*Duration*	*CA Section*
Published literary, musical, dramatic works	From time made to 70 years after author's death	s.33(2)
Unpublished literary, musical, dramatic works at the time of author's death	From time made to 70 years after first published	s.33(3)
Unpublished engravings at the time of author's death	From time made to 70 years after author's death	s.33(5)
Anonymous and pseudonymous works	70 years after first publication	s.34(1)
Sound recordings	70 years after first publication	s.93
Films made in Australia or by a 'qualified person'	From time made to 70 years after publication	s.94(1)
Films not made in Australia	70 years after publication	s.94(2)
TV and sound broadcasts	50 years after year of production	s.95
Live performances	50 years after the year of performance	s.248CA
Printed editions of works	From time made to 25 years after year of publication	s.96
Literary and musical works subject to Crown copyright	From time made to 50 years after year of publication	s.180(1)
Artistic works subject to Crown copyright	50 years after being made	s.180(2)
Engravings and photographs subject to Crown copyright	From time made to 50 years after published	s.180(3)
Sound recordings and films subject to Crown copyright	50 years after first published	s.181
Works by international organisations	From time made to 70 years after first publication	s.187
Sound recordings and films subject to Crown copyright	From time made to 70 years after first publication	s.188(1)
Printed editions subject to Crown copyright	From time made to 25 years after first publication	s.188(2)