Understanding Copyright and Legal Regulations in Music Industry

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Information Law
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INFORMATION LAW 2
Information Law
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Dear Lei Lan,
Whether one is making music for fun or making a career out of it, he or she needs to
know some vital legal regulations associated with music. The major legal regulations in the area
of music include the copyright and moral rights. Copyright is a package of rights that musicians,
visual artist, film makers, and video and writers makers own in connection to their work.
Copyright can be in form of a symbol and it enables the creator to control and get money for his
or her work. Copyright can be owned by anybody who has created a work. It gives the creator
ownership rights, automatic and free law protection once the work has been created. Other than
that, it does not protect styles and ideas. Moreover, for a copyright legal protection to exist there
must be a tangible or digital form. Copyright means that only the creator has rights to do some
things with his work. Therefore, I intend to give some legal advice as music copyright is
concerned infringement is concerned.
Using other People’s Work
Copyright is a form of intellectual property that is found in the provisions of the
Copyright Act 1968. It provides right to produce or copy the work, make a copy of the work,
publish it, perform in public, and broadcast it in public. It is a violation of copyright to perform
the above rights without the permission of the owner of the copyright. Violation of copyright
does not involved the work in its entirety, but to take a significant part of the work. A copyright

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in every type of work has its existence independence. For example, a compact disc may have
separate in the composition, arrangement, sound recording, and lyrics. Therefore, any business
concerning such materials must recognize all applicable layers of copyright. On the other hand,
copyright protects the labour and the skill involved in a specific expression of ideas in a tangible
medium, but not just the ideas or information.
Moreover, the owner of the copyright is the creator of the work. However, any work
created by a contractor belongs to the contractor, and that created in the context of employment
belongs to the employer. The Copyright Act 1968 does not involve the completion of rules like
publication, payment fees, or registration for the protection to be obtained (Gilchrist, 2014). Just
like in any other form of property, copyright can get assigned to another owner. On the other
hand, using a copyright material can be exclusively or non-exclusively licensed to a new owner.
Moreover, a copyright only protects works that may include music and song lyrics. Music
may comprise of rap, traditional instrument, and orchestra among others. Other works protected
by copyright may include sound recordings of one made in recording studio or live performance.
The law protects music and lyrics only if they have been recorded or written down. It does not
protect another person or band from copying ones ideas or styles such as sound provided that
they do not copy another person’s music or lyrics. For example, in case Led Zeppelin v. Willie
Dixon (1972), was about copying of somebody’s music lyrics (Newman, 2017). The suit was
settled out of court for undisclosed large sum of money. With regard to your case, it is evident
that you used other people’s lyrics in your songs without their permission. This means that you
copied other people’s work, which is protected by the Act.
Copyright and Proof of Ownership