As of last month, April 7th 2007, Trading Standards Officers now have new powers in the UK (excluding Scotland) to prosecute criminal offences relating to copyright – and this will obviously include the copyright of art images.
How is this enforcement going to happen? Well firstly the UK government is paying for 4,500 new ‘copyright police’ who will be carrying out raids across the UK as of April.
Secondly, following recommendations in December 2006’s Gowers Review of Intellectual Property, responsibility for this type of enforcement has moved from the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) to Trading Standards Officers, giving them new power under Section 107A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. It will also give £5 million to law enforcement agencies to tackle copyright infringement.
“From 6 April, there’ll be an additional 4,500 pairs of Trading Standards eyes watching counterfeiters and pirates,” said the UK’s Trade and Industry Minister, Malcolm Wicks. “This will mean more surprise raids at markets and boot sales, more intelligence, more prosecutions, and more criminals locked up.”
It will be interesting to see how this new legislation affects both buyers and sellers of art. This will obviously help stop the illegal copying of original art, limited edition & unlimited prints. When such ‘copying’ does take place, these images are often illegally put on other products e.g.: Clock faces, mats, posters etc or simply reproduced and sold as art ‘prints’.
I am personally not sure however how will effect things like the sale of mounted ‘cards’ and ‘magazine’ pages, being sold and more importantly ‘described’ as being art prints. I think this whole area is a bit grey and I’m not sure if the new Laws will affect the sale of that type of art. As far as my knowledge of the art business in concerned, that is the biggest ongoing copyright infringement that takes place.
Further reading can be found here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/02/13/more_copyright_police/
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/crime.htm
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/gowers_review_intellectual_property/gowersreview_index.cfm
http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/copyright/uk_law_summary
thank you
Russell
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