Copyright

... in the info section ‘Copyright' can be accessed directly via the following links. You can access all content via the drop-down menu under 'Copyright' above.

Rights of authors   
Tools to exercise rights  
Requesting rights from third parties  
Organisers' and performers' rights 
 

• German copyright law protects all authors of original content, i.e. people who create works of art. As a rule, this is what is known as the level of originality. The thresholds here are low, which means that it is often possible to speak very quickly of a work protected by copyright.  
• Authors have various rights to their work. However, they can never transfer the copyrights, only the rights of use. For example, they can grant an exclusive right of use that is unlimited in time and space or a right of use that is limited in time and space.    
• Artists who are not directly involved in the creation of a work but who are involved in its performance are protected by ancillary copyright. This includes, for example, musicians in a band (who are not involved in the composition), actors, and event organisers. Collecting societies represent the rights of authors or holders of neighbouring rights.  
• Copyright law is harmonised within the EU, which means that the copyright laws of the Member States are largely similar. In non-EU countries, completely different rules often apply (e.g. in the USA). In principle, depending on the country in which the work is used, the national law of that country applies.    
• If you want to use copyrighted works, you must always check what rights you need to obtain and whether you must pay additional fees to collecting societies.

Here you will find detailed information on the rights of authors and performers of all disciplines in the national and international context, as well as tips on the clarification of specific rights: What do you have to do if, for example, you want to clarify rights of use as an organiser or curator?

The general rule is as follows:

• If artistic works that meet the threshold of originality are created in the context of a collaboration, for example with clients or partners, the question of how the use of the works will be regulated should be clarified in advance. If the copyright laws of a foreign country apply, you should check carefully who owns the copyrights to these works.
• Third-party rights should be clarified well in advance of a performance, exhibition, etc. This is especially important for international projects, which further complicate these issues, because making creative content available to an audience theoretically requires a separate rights clearance process for each country in which an event takes place.
• There is no globally uniform copyright law; even within the European Union, only partial harmonisation of national rights has been achieved to date (see the information provided by the European Commission). In copyright law, the law of the country whose territory is affected applies (territoriality principle). However, there are numerous international agreements in which the different legal situations converge to a certain extent.
• The respective national law determines the owner of the rights of use, the term of protection of works, the restrictions to which the copyright is subject, and how the rights can be transferred (for example via collecting societies or directly through the owner of the rights).

These pages explain:

• The rights of authors
• The rights of performers and agents
• What applies in an international context
• Which rights of use must be requested from third parties
• Which tools are available
• Some specifics pertaining to individual sectors

Act on Copyright and Related Rights Link   
Regulation Artificial Intelligence (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689) Link 

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