What is Copyright?
Copyright is a property right, regulated by statute (the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000) which gives the owner of a creative work (e.g.) a song or a piece of music) the right to permit or prevent the use of that work by others. Copyright confers on the creator of a work the right to allow or prevent a number of ‘restricted acts’. These restricted acts include making a copy of the work, making the work available to the public and making an adaptation of the work. Intellectual property refers to all intangible property such as copyrights or patents.