Microsoft Word ip intellectual property rights doc

Subsistence of copyright

Copyright subsists in the expression of an idea, not in the idea in itself.

The level of originality for a work to attract copyright is very low.  Literary or artistic merit are not

a prerequisite.  Therefore copyright can exist in everyday items in business such as customer

lists and management accounts.  Personal items such as letters will also attract copyright

protection.

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Copyright exists automatically as soon as an idea is expressed, whether on paper, a computer,

photographic, sound or video film.  Unlike other intellectual property rights, in the U.K., there is

no registration system for copyright.