Copyright for Entrepreneurs: From Creation to Ownership
When you run a business—whether it’s publishing, tech, design, or media—understanding copyright is not just for lawyers. It directly affects contracts, ownership of content, and even your company’s valuation.
Let’s break down the first pillars of copyright every entrepreneur should know.
1. Permanence: Why Fixing Your Work Matters
Copyright only exists if your work is fixed in a permanent form. An idea in your head, or words spoken in a meeting, are not protected.
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Example: A marketing team brainstorms slogans in a meeting. Until someone writes them down or records them, there is no copyright.
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Practical tip: Always document and date creative outputs (text, code, images, presentations). This protects your business in case of disputes.
2. Originality: Adding Your Own Creative Input
The threshold for originality is not “genius-level creativity” but rather a demonstration of intellectual effort.
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Example EU: A UK designer making custom packaging layouts owns copyright in the design.
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Example Asia: A developer in India writing unique software code is automatically protected.
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Business risk: Copy-pasting from templates may not give you strong protection, and could expose you to infringement claims.
3. Authorship vs. Ownership: Who Really Owns It?
A common business mistake is confusing who created the work with who owns the copyright.
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The author (creator) is normally the first copyright owner.
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But the physical medium (like paper, USB, or CD) belongs to whoever possesses it.
4. Works Created by Employees
Under most copyright laws (like the UK CDPA s.11(2)), if an employee creates something in the course of employment, the employer owns the copyright.
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Example: A software engineer at a tech company writes code as part of her job. The company—not the individual—owns the copyright.
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Test for employment: Could the employee have been ordered to produce the work? If yes, it belongs to the employer.
This rule does not apply to freelancers—where contracts must clearly assign rights.
5. Commissioned Works: A Frequent Misunderstanding
Businesses often assume that if they pay for a work, they automatically own it. This is wrong unless a contract clearly transfers copyright.
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Example: A start-up pays a freelance designer to make a logo. Without a written contract assigning copyright, the designer remains the legal owner. The business may only get a license to use the logo.
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Court approach: If the contract is silent, courts may grant the commissioner an exclusive license or, in rare cases, equitable ownership.
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Business tip: Always sign a written agreement (assignment clause) when commissioning works—especially logos, software, and marketing content.
we saw that copyright begins with permanence, belongs to the author by default, and may pass to an employer or commissioner only if the law or contract says so.
Now let’s move deeper into how copyright works when more people are involved, and how long protection actually lasts.
6. Joint Authorship: When More Minds Create Together
When two or more people create a work together, copyright law asks a simple but tough question:
Can we separate their contributions, or is the work indivisible?
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If the contributions cannot be separated, it’s a work of joint authorship.
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If each person’s work is clearly distinct (e.g., one writes the lyrics, another writes the melody), each holds their own copyright.
Why this matters for business
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Decision-making: All joint authors must consent to licensing or exploitation.
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Duration: Protection lasts until 70 years after the death of the last surviving author.
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Risk: Without clear agreements, disputes can freeze a project.
Business tip: If you’re building something with a partner (a book, an app, a film script), sign a contract that defines:
7. Equitable Ownership: Beyond the Paper Contract
Even without a perfect written agreement, courts or arbiters may recognize that fairness requires giving one party rights in a work.
This shows that business relationships matter as much as contracts. But never rely only on “understandings”—put everything in writing.
8. Duration: How Long Copyright Lasts
Duration of protection depends on the type of work. For entrepreneurs, knowing this is crucial because it affects how long you can exploit assets—or when competitors can legally use them.
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Literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works:
Author’s lifetime + 70 years (counted from the end of the year of death).
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Works of unknown authorship:
70 years from creation, or if published within 70 years, then 70 years from first publication.
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Computer-generated works (where no human author can be identified):
50 years from creation.
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Films:
70 years from the death of the last surviving key creator (director, screenwriter, composer of original score, etc.).
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Sound recordings:
50 years from creation. If published or made public within that period, then 70 years from that event.
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Broadcasts:
50 years from the date of the broadcast.
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Typographical arrangements (e.g., book layouts):
25 years from first publication.
9. International Dimension: What if You Work Across Borders?
Thanks to international conventions (like the Berne Convention), most countries automatically recognize each other’s copyrights. This means:
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A book written in France is protected in Singapore, the USA, and South Africa without registration.
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A song recorded in India gets protection in the UK and EU.
But:
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Duration can vary slightly by country.
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Moral rights (like the right to be named as author) may be stronger in civil law countries (e.g., France) than in common law ones (e.g., USA, UK).
10. Business Checklist for Entrepreneurs
Here’s how to protect and maximize your copyright assets:
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Fix your creations (documents, code, media) in a durable format.
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Record authorship (who did what, when).
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Use contracts with employees, freelancers, and partners—don’t assume payment = ownership.
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Agree on joint authorship terms early to avoid conflicts.
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Know your timelines—some works protect your business for decades, others for a shorter period.
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Think globally—your rights usually extend abroad, but understand local variations.
Final Takeaway:
Copyright is not just legal theory—it’s a business tool.
Handled well, it protects your content, your brand, and your investments. Handled poorly, it can block your growth or cause costly disputes.
Q1: When does copyright protection actually begin for a creative work?
When the work is fixed in a tangible or permanent form, like writing or recording it
As soon as the creator thinks of the idea in their head
Only after it is published or sold commercially
Q2: Who is usually the first owner of copyright in a work?
The author or creator of the work, unless the law or a contract states otherwise
The person who paid for or commissioned the work by default
The person who owns the physical copy (like the paper or canvas)
Q3: What happens when an employee creates a work as part of their job?
The employer owns the copyright, as the work was made in the course of employment
The employee always keeps the copyright unless they sign a waiver
Ownership alternates yearly between the employee and the company
