Copyright Protection In Brunei Darussalam.

15 December, 2016

 

In today’s blog post we are taking a look at the copyright protection in Brunei Darussalam, the smallest nation in ASEAN. You’ll learn how to protect your copyright and what actions are there available in the case of a copyright infringement. 

 

Background for EU SMEs

 

Brunei Darussalam is one of the 10 countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN).  Despite being one of the smallest ASEAN countries, it is also one of the wealthiest nations in the South-East Asian region. Brunei Darussalam has an annual GDP of EUR 10.6 billion[1] and most of its revenue comes from the exports of crude oil and natural gas.

 

The European Union is Brunei Darussalam’s 5th largest trading partner. The EU’s Key exports to Brunei Darussalam include pearls, precious metals, transport equipment and machinery and appliances. The EU’s key imports from Brunei Darussalam include machinery and appliances, optical and photographic instruments, pearls and precious metals.

Brunei Darussalam’s legal system is based on English Common Law and since the year 2000, Brunei Darussalam has passed various legislations on trade marks, industrial designs, copyright and patents. Brunei Darussalam’s IP legal system is in compliance with international standards, complying with international agreements and treaties administered by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). It is a member of a number of conventions including the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs. Brunei Darussalam is also a signatory of the TRIPS agreement.

 

Copyright in Brunei Darussalam

 

Copyrights in Brunei Darussalam are exclusive rights which principally protect original work that is given to its creator for a limited time. Copyright owners are the legal owners of the work and have exclusive rights over its use, adaptation, re-creation and dissemination. The kinds of works that can be protected principally include literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works. Copyright also protects sound recordings, films, broadcasts receivable by members of the public, cable programs and the typed arrangement of published editions of any literary, dramatic or musical works.

 

The ‘author’ in relation to the works protected by copyright is the person who created the work. The author may include, for computer-generated work, the person who makes arrangements necessary for the creation of the work. The author is the first owner of any copyright. If the author is an employee who created the work in the course of employment, then the employer is, by default, the first owner of the copyright in the work. Copyright may be assigned or licensed by the owner to third parties.

 

In Brunei Darussalam literary, dramatic, musical, computer generated and artistic works are protected for fifty years from the end of the year in which the author died. Sound recordings, films, broadcasts and cable programs are protected for fifty years from the end of the year in which they were released broadcasted or transmitted.

 

How to protect Copyright

 

Copyright is a right given automatically by law to the owner without the need for him/her to register the right. There is no registry or any department in Brunei Darussalam that accepts registration of copyright. The copyright owner in a work has the exclusive right in Brunei Darussalam to copy his/her work, to issue copies of the work to the public, to broadcast the work or include it in a cable programme service, to make an adaptation of the work or to do any of those acts in relation to an adaptation and to communicate the work to the public.

 

Anyone other than the owner who is caught doing the above without license or authorisation of the owner is in breach of the law and liable to punishment if action is taken by the copyright owner. However, it should be kept in mind that an owner of a copyright may not be entitled to damages against a defendant if the defendant can show that he/she did not know or have reason to believe that he/she had infringed a copyright.

 

The copyright owner in a work has the exclusive right to do any of the acts that are restricted by the copyright, subject to the regulatory regimes and criminal law of Brunei Darussalam. These restricted acts include copying the work, issuing copies of the work to the public, broadcasting the work or including it in a cable programme service, making an adaptation of the work or doing any acts in relation to adapting and communicating the work to the public.

 

Enforcement

 

Enforcing Copyright through Customs

 

There is a provision under the Copyright law in which the owner of a copyright, who suspects that goods to be imported into Brunei Darussalam are counterfeits, may give notice to the Controller claiming his ownership of the created work and request the Customs to treat as prohibited goods infringing copies of the work for a period of not exceeding five (5) years. The Customs officers may treat the infringing copies as prohibited goods.

 

Written notice has to be given by the owner of the copyrighted work to the Controller of Customs to prevent work that infringes copyright from entering Brunei Darussalam. The owner of the copyright must firstly establish his ownership and provide the details of the infringing works and the expected shipment of such goods to enable the Customs to identify the infringing works coming into Brunei Darussalam.

 

Civil Litigation

 

Civil proceedings may be brought in court by a copyright owner facing infringement. The copyright owner may claim for such remedies as an injunction, order for delivery up to the infringing product seizure, damages or account of profits.

Civil proceedings are the easiest avenue for enforcement for most IP owners facing infringement. To initiate a lawsuit, SMEs will need to file a writ endorsed with a Statement of Claim alleging the infringing act and claiming for the remedy.

 

Before filing the court action, a letter to the infringer to cease and desist should be deployed. Court hearings may take up to two years, although court hearings recently became faster and the trial dates may be given within twelve to fifteen months. However, if the infringer responds to the initial cease and desist letter, the process of settlement is much faster.

 

Criminal Prosecution

 

Criminal Prosecution is usually considered the most cost effective enforcement route available to copyright holders as the legal expenses of prosecution are borne by the Government as the prosecuting party. It is also the best route to take for actions against infringers on a commercial scale and when infringement.

 

To file a prosecution, a police report must be firstly made. The police force will then conduct investigations and depending on their findings, they may conduct raids. Lastly, the police will report to a public prosecutor of the Attorney General Chambers about whether to prosecute the offender. Copyright infringement includes penalties not exceeding a fine of B$10,000 (approximately EUR 3,210), imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or both. Criminal prosecution is brought by the Attorney Generals Chamber and is thus free.