Importance of Image Rights - Essay Example

? Importance of image rights Image rights refer to a commercial use of an individual’s likeness, signature, voice or image. These rights apply regardless of whether the unscrupulous use of any these things cause any harm. The importance of image rights dates back in the 1840s with the works of Prince Albert. It was passed that his works could not be published or reproduced without him consenting to it. Image rights have increasingly gained importance through the years. In the 20th century, France formulated and incorporated image rights and was later followed by Germany. England has been slow in adopting these rights as it is perceived as clashing with the principle of Freedom of Expression. The English contend that intellectual property rights costs public good. Advances in digital technology have shaken the grounds on which intellectual property stand. This has made people to focus more attention on coming up with ways of ensuring freedom of expression that would enhance the public domain whilst rewarding creativity. Image rights promote invention and creation that promote quasi monopoly or monopoly rights so as to accord creativity the credit it deserves. Celebrities in music, sports and media world have gained profound significance in the contemporary world. Product sellers and advertisers are increasing approaching celebrities for work as they want to be associated to this fame. Competitive brand ambassadors help popularize products and increase sales. The financial benefits that accompany the status of such celebrities implore the need to have a mechanism of protecting celebrities. Red Croz would need to know that there is the need to balance between their public and private lives. They are prone to misuse and exploitation, even if indirectly, by those who live and work around them. Image rights promote the right to privacy hence upholding the human dignity of such celebrities (Passman 2012, p.2). Protecting the band Logo Red Croz’s logo has a stylized red cross on a white background with the letter Z in black superimposed over the cross. There are different ways of creating a logo. A combined mark logo involves an image and a word. The numbers and words used in combined mark logos require trademark clearance so as to ensure that they are not used elsewhere. A device mark logo involves an image, for example, that of an animal. Red Croz’s logo is a stylized mark. The most common way to protect a logo is using trademark. Even so, this depends on how the mark will be used. When using a logo as a combined mark, it is enough to use a single combined registration. In instances where the elements in a logo are used separately, each element is registered separately and also in combination (Kemp & Hill, 2005). Copyright registration can also be used to protect a logo. In the United Kingdom, the creator of a work gets its copyright automatically. A contract is needed to change ownership of such a work. In the United States of America, one needs to register copyright of a work through Library of Congress. Proof is needed to stop another individual or business from using another’s logo. This is because the other business or individual could claim that their logo was stolen or copied. Establishing upfront solid evidence is important if logo copyrighted through registration. This evidence would be needed in a court of law when challenging logo infringement (Passman 2012, p.4). A logo can also be registered as a design or a trademark. Registering a logo as a design is more powerful than registering it as a copyright. Registering a logo a design helps deter logo copying. This registration allows a business or individual to stop others from using logos that are too close to theirs even if they did not copy them. In the United Kingdom and in the European Union has an allowance for design registration of logos. The registration is renewable after every five years for a period of twenty five years. Design registration of a logo is given a period of one year after which the right expires. Design logo registration is best used alongside trademark registration (Furmston 2012, p.20). Having both registrations increases the level of protection by covering many scenarios of likely logo theft. For instance, in Red Croz’s endeavor to revamp their website and advertise their activities on social media, they need to check that there is no other business using logos similar to theirs. The German group of artists called RedCrossOne could run a non-competitive business activity using a logo similar to that of Red Croz. Red Croz would use their design logo registration to stop such advertisement. Trademark registration cannot help in such a case. Design logo registration can help stop comparative advertisement by another business when trademark law cannot (Bagehot & Kanaar 2009, p.34). Protecting the brand name Brand and company names are important assets in business that needs to be protected. Business name protection comes at different levels. These levels include local, state, national and international. Red Croz needs to decide the level to which they would want to protect their band name. Local and state level protection suffices for business needs within the immediate environment. Common law accords businesses a right to their trade names. Protection by common law is not necessarily filed with the government. Local common law protection can be extended to state protection by registering the band’s legal name. Incorporated businesses are automatically registered for state protection. A DBA needs to be filed if the businesspeople do business using a different name from legal business name. DBA is also called a fictitious name. A business that advertises or is largely known by people by another name, that business is operating with a fictitious name. Different states will have different requirements for filing DBA. In the case where the federal government lacks a record of businesses operating under fictitious names, the registered DBA provides states protection only. Some businesses extend their operation to foreign countries. It is important for these businesses to file with the foreign countries where they operate. Some countries issue trademark protection to businesses that register trademark first, while others while others issues legal rights to businesses that use trademark first. There are no universally recognized laws that protect trade mark and trade name internationally. However, countries do sign agreements to internationally protect intellectual property. These agreements suffice protection needs in a wide global region or in many different countries. For, instance, Community trademark system provides trademark protection in twenty seven countries affiliated to the European Union. The Madrid System uses bundles of national registrations and not a single international trademark registration system. It allows its users to apply once for protection in all the eighty four countries members to the Madrid System. The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) spells out minimum standards by which its one hundred and fifty three members have to abide. While there is no application needed in TRIPS, the agreement the agreement covers property rights internationally. Incorporating involves registration of corporate name with secretaries of states where a business has been operating. This registration allows the state to check whether there are other similar corporate names in operation. Once the corporate name is approved, the business is issued with the right and obligation to operate under that name in the whole of the state. There are instances when other businesses can feel that, if a business used a certain DBA or fictitious name, it will confuse customers. These other businesses can petition against that business using that corporate name. This is why it is important to check for confusing names using trade publications, city directories, and telephone books, nongovernmental and governmental sources. There are optional registrations that businesses can consider. This consideration factors in the size of the business and whether the business plans to operate in a wide geographical region. A federal register helps search for service and trademarks available. Optional registrations have costs involved , but they help businesses avoid unnecessary penalties due to infringement charges. Basic copyright protection(s) afforded to both sound recordings and songs against unauthorized copying and use A songwriter and all other literary composers get the right to a song instantly after its creation. These rights are, however, considered as largely intellectual copyright for as long as it is not registered, transcribed into print or saved in a permanent medium. It would be difficult for a songwriter to prove his on ownership of a song he wrote if another musician learned the lyrics and melody of the song if the song was never published or recorded. Such occurrences are common when bands split and members become artists. Having intellectual rights to songs are not enough to help songwriters regulate the likely uses of those songs. Songwriters who work in studios and on a contract basis do sometimes give up some of their right as requirements of the agreements that they may sign with their employers. In such cases, these employers enjoy certain rights to ownership of the songs including album compilation, covers by other artists and sampling. This is taken as work product in the sense that it was created on the employer’s time (Flint et al, 2011). There is a difference between the rights to perform a song and those of recording the song. Publishers of songs enjoy the mechanical rights to the song they publish. Many of the people who publish songs are not the composers of those songs. In order for musicians and producers to record songs and release them on albums, they need to get the mechanical rights to those songs. This enables artists to regulate the use if their music especially when their visions clash those of other interested parties. The parties that have mechanical rights to songs have an important influence on the future of those songs. Commonly, this is why original songwriters insists on working as heads of the music publishing companies that publish their music (Cornish et al, 2013). Music publishers need publishing license from individuals who own copyrights to the pieces of music including composition and lyrics. This happens when words or music have been written down. Those who record music obtain recording license from individuals who perform the original versions of songs (Cateforis, 2012). How UK law and other jurisdictions adapt to new technologies/ legal challenges in fighting online piracy Copyright ideas originated in the fifteenth century with the emergence of the printing press in 1947. The technology of the printing press changed ways of storing, retrieving, using and duplicating information making them accurate and easy. In the year 1529, a law was passed that required licensing of manuscripts before publication. Copyright was used by governments in not only Britain but also other European countries and others in America to control publication. In the 1680s, there emerged discourse on having separate rights for tangible property and those for intangible property. The Licensing Act prohibited the publication of dangerous material. It gave the stationer’s company right to published work. Other acts and statutes followed including the statute of Ann that sought to protect monopolies in the sale of books and to institute copyright law in Scotland. Owing to Donaldson’s effort, copyright changed to mean the right of a work’s author. Berne Convention resulted in the extension of copyright law to allow works produced from without Britain. In 1911, copyright act was adopted due to the efforts of publishers and musicians. Registration of copyright with Stationers Hall was abolished by this copyright act. Advances in new technology led to more changes in the copyright law. The copyright act of 1956 allowed the accession of UK into the universal copyright convention. The act also protected the rights of broadcasts and films (Aczon, 2011). The Copyright, Design and Patents Act (CDPA) of led to more changes in the copyright law of UK. The Act protected copyright owners and extended time and exception that was the place on copyright works. In 2003, the copyright and related rights regulations were adopted. These regulations were meant to help modify the protection rights of owners of information societies, and harmonize European Union’s copyright protection. It enhanced the ratification of WIPO copyright treaties which had also been implemented in the United States of America. These regulations modified the provisions of the Copyright, Design and Patents Act. Such changes affected sections such as rights management information, technical protection, reproduction rights, and exceptions from copyright (Bainbridge 2012, p.7). There are various challenges that are plaguing the fight against online piracy. There is the challenge of how to come up with legislation that fights online piracy while at the same time guards against the risk to introduce online censorship of lawful activity. Such legislation is also expected not to impede innovation by businesses. Internet has become crucial in business for governments, and general society. As such, there is a need to protect its openness and accessibility. The legislation is, therefore, supposed to target specific prohibited activity so as to minimize its risk of tampering with the openness and accessibility to the Internet. Provisions of such legislation that cover internet intermediaries including search engines, payment processors and online advertising networks are expected to be transparent. They should be designed in such a way that is does not litigate private rights unjustly as this would discourage innovative business ideas (Cateforis 2012, p.23). Any legislation that is meant to fight off online piracy is expected not to create cyber-security risks or sabotage Internet’s architecture. The foundation of internet security is in its Domain Name System (DNS). Legislation can interfere with the internet’s technical structure by manipulating the DNS. This would increase cyber-security risks and does not eliminate online contraband services and goods. Policy makers and legislators face the challenge of ensuring that laws do not compromise the security of Internet users. It would wrong for these laws to force Internet users to use DNS servers that are unreliable or deploying DNSSEC (Abbott et al, 2013). Business models A manufacturer business model creates products from raw material or by assembling a product’s distinct components. The manufacturer has the option of selling his or her goods directly to customers or outsourcing sales services of other individuals and companies. Distributor business model is one in which a company purchases goods from manufacturers and sells them the through either directly to the public or by retail. In a retail business model, a retailer buys products from distributors or wholesalers, and sells these commodities to the public. Retailers commonly have physical locations and could also be online. Franchise business model involves distributors, retailers or manufacturers with respect to the franchise purchased. Franchise business model comes with the advantage of a franchise company. Further, the franchise business model can incorporate other types of business models in to its structure. A franchise business can buy a franchise from another franchise firm or from a franchise distributor legalized to deal in franchise in a certain region. Business models are part of a business’s intellectual property. As such, they can be protected under patent laws. Other ways of protecting business methods and ideas include trademarks, employment agreement, non-disclosure agreement, and trade secrets. As discussed elsewhere in this paper, trademarks help protect business and trade names. Another protection that comes close to trademark is a service mark. A service mark specifies and distinguish the person or agency that provides the service or good rather than the service or good itself (Abbott et al, 2013). Employment agreements require employees to append their signatures to a written agreement pledging to keep information of the business confidential. Non-competition agreements work well along employment agreements. Non-disclosure agreements are basically used by potential business partners or people who fund the business. When planning to start a business, people share and discuss their plans with others maybe for insight or to seek funds from them. The people with whom one shares their business plans can steal away the idea. This is why signing a non-disclosure agreement is important at the very onset of the discussion (Abbott et al, 2013). Conclusion In conclusion, advances in digital technology have shaken the grounds on which intellectual property stand. This has made people to focus more attention on coming up with ways of ensuring freedom of expression that would enhance the public domain whilst rewarding creativity. Having intellectual rights to songs are not enough to help songwriters regulate the likely uses of those songs. When planning to start a business, people share and discuss their plans with others maybe for insight or to seek funds from them. Business models are part of a business’s intellectual property. As such, they can be protected under patent laws. References List Abbott, K., Pendlebury, N., & Wardman, K. (2013), BUSINESS LAW (9th Ed), London, Cengage. Aczon, M. (2011). The Musician’s Legal Companion (2nd Ed). Boston, Cengage. Bagehot, R. & Kanaar N. (2009). Bagehot on Music Business Agreements. (3rd Ed). London, Sweet & Maxwell Bainbridge, D. (2012). Intellectual Property (9th Ed.) Harlow, Pearson Publishing (FT) Cateforis, T. (2012). Rock History Reader (New Ed), New York, Routledge Cornish, W., Llewelyn D & Aplin T (2013). Intellectual Property, Patents, Copyrights, Trademarks and Allied Rights Thomson 8th Ed), New York, Sweet & Maxwell Flint, M., Fitzpatrick, N. & Thorne, C. (2011). A Users Guide To Copyright (7th Ed). London, Bloomsbury Furmston, M. (2012). Cheshire Fifoot & Furmston's Law Of Contract (16th Ed). London, Butterworths Harrison, A. (2011). Music The Business (5th ed), London, Virgin Books Kemp, C. & Hill, I. (2005). Health & Safety Aspects in the Live Music Industry, New York, ETP. Passman, D. (2012). All You Need To Know About the Music Industry: 8th Ed, New York, Viking. Read More