EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1990 NO. 357
Subject - Copyright Act 1968
Copyright (International Protection) Regulations (Amendment).
Section 249 of the Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act.
Section 148 of the Act provides that the regulations may make provision applying any of the provisions of the Act specified in the regulations, in relation to a country (other than Australia) so specified.
Amendments to the Copyright (International Protection) Regulations have been made to delete and effect reciprocal copyright protection to Singapore and to update the Schedules to the Regulations to apply to Singapore Copyright Act 1987 to Australian works in Singapore (Attachment 1).
Amendments have been made to Schedule 1 to update Part I and Part II.
To reflect changes in the membership of countries to the international Conventions (Attachment 2).
Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment 1 and Attachment 2.
Attachment 1
Details of proposed Copyright (International Protection) Regulations (Amendment)
(Amendment of rr 3, 4, 8, 9, 11 and Schedule 1)
Regulation l: commencement
This regulation provides for the proposed amendments to commence on 1 December 1990.
Regulation 1: Principal Regulations
Regulation 2 provides for the Copyright (International Protection) Regulations to be referred to as the ‘Principal Regulations’.
Regulation 3: Interpretation
Regulation 3 includes Singapore in the definition of ‘country of origin’, thereby applying the law of Singapore in certain cases of simultaneous publication in respect of works and cinematograph films.
Regulation 4: Application of the Act
Regulation 4 applies the Act to literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and editions first published, and sound recordings and cinematograph films, first made or first published, in Singapore in like manner as it is applied in Australia.
Regulation 5: Copyright not to subsist in overseas editions in certain cases
Regulation 5 amends regulation 8 of the Principal Regulations, which limits the duration of copyright in foreign published editions, to apply to Singapore.
Regulation 6: Application of certain provisions of Act to certain overseas works
Regulation 6 amends regulation 9 of the Principal Regulation to apply to Singapore, thereby extending the Act to works published in Singapore prior to both the Copyright Act 1968 and the Copyright Act 1912.
Regulation 7: Modification of application of the provisions Qt the Act
Regulation 11 of the Principal Regulations preserves rights acguired by persons before the commencement of the Principal Regulations or before any amendment of those Regulations. Such rights will commonly be affected when Schedule 1 to the Principal Regulations is amended by adding countries which have joined either of the two major international copyright Conventions (paragraph 11(2)(a)).
The effect of regulation 7 of the amending Statutory Rules is to add Singapore to the list of countries in respect of which the preservation of existing rights is to apply.
Regulation 6: Schedule 1
A new Part III is added to Schedule 1 to the Regulations to include Singapore. The effect of adding Singapore to the list of countries in the Schedule is to give effect to the bilateral agreement between Australia and Singapore for the reciprocal protection of copyright.