What is copyright?

Copyright is part of a group of intellectual property rights, which provide legal protection to creators of works of the mind. Copyright in South Africa is governed by the Copyright Act No. 98 of 1978, as amended and the Regulations made in terms thereof and it grants owners of copyright (authors and other creators of intellectual property) the right to:

• Reproduce the work;
• Create derivative works based on the original work;
• Distribute copies of the work;
• To perform the work, or
• To display the work in public.

(However, subject to certain conditions and within specific limits, the Act and Regulations afford the lecturer and the student the right to make copies of copyrighted works without obtaining permission).