Clearly outline the role and function of JIPO and evaluate the extent to which the passing of the Copyright Act (1993) have impacted Jamaican music business culture, practices and law.
The term Copyright, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, can be defined as the legal right granted to an author, composer, playwright, publisher, or distributor to exclusive publication, production, sale, or distribution of a literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic work.
In Jamaica, copyright and the laws associated with it were not really recognized until when the copyright Act was tabled and passed in the Jamaican Parliament on September 1, 1993. For the purposes of the Jamaican Copyright Act, copyright applies to original dramatic, literary, sound recordings, artistic works, films, cable programmes, broadcasts or typographical arrangements of published editions. Due to the vast landscape of the performing and literary arts sectors, copyright-protected material includes word that is spoken, sung and/or written, graphic works such as paintings, drawings, photographs, sculptures, dances and mimes, as well as films, just to name a few areas.
For the protection of Jamaican persons who seek to own intellectual property and earn from it, the Jamaica Intellectual Property Office was formed in January of 2001. This formation was done at this time due to the fact that there was a heightened need to track and safeguard intellectual property of Jamaicans and persons who propagate Intellectual Property in Jamaica. Intellectual property can best be defined as a product of the intellect that has commercial value, including copyrighted property such as literary or artistic works, and ideatio ...