of music, for example, will usually embody: 1) a musical work, 2) a literary work (the lyrics) and 3) a sound recording work.  Those three separate works may be owned by three separate people. There are no "levels of copyright" as such but the owner of a copyright work has various exclusive rights including the right to copy the work and the right to issues copies of the work to the public. It is worth taking a look at sections 1-21 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 for further details. Q: How do you find out if information available online is restricted by copyright, and what should you do if you want to use a particular piece of copyrighted material for your own purposes? A: Unlike registered trademarks, a copyright work does not have to be registered, as copyright (subject to certain requirements) subsists automatically. As a result, you should assume that the copyright in any music, photograph, article or video that you find online is owned by someone who has the exclusive rights set out in the first answer above. Q: Are there any cases in which you are allowed to use or sample parts of copyrighted content available online without seeking permission? A: Yes, there are various exemptions which are set out in Part III of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and include "fair dealing" with a work for criticism, review and news reporting.  Some owners of copyright works also expressly permit use without