# Copyright Act 1987 (Singapore)/Part X

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PART X MISCELLANEOUS
Assignments and licences in respect of copyright
194.—(1) Subject to this section, copyright shall be transmissible by assignment, by testamentary disposition, or by operation of law as personal or moveable property.
(2) An assignment of copyright may be limited in any of the following ways, or in any combination of two or more of those ways,—
    (a) so as to apply to one or more, but not all, of the classes of acts which by virtue of this Act the owner of the copyright has the exclusive right to do (including any one or more classes of acts not separately designated in this Act as being restricted by the copyright, but falling within any of the classes of acts so designated);
    (b) so as to apply to any one or more, but not all, of the countries in relation to which the owner of the copyright has by virtue of this Act that exclusive right;
    (c) so as to apply to part, but not the whole, of the period for which the copyright is to subsist,
​and references in this Act to a partial assignment are references to an assignment so limited.
(3) No assignment of copyright (whether total or partial) shall have effect unless it is in writing signed by or on behalf of the assignor.
(4) A licence granted in respect of any copyright by the person who, in relation to the matters to which the licence relates, is the owner of the copyright shall be binding upon every successor in title to his interest in the copyright, except a purchaser in good faith for valuable consideration and without notice (actual or constructive) of the licence or a person deriving title from such a purchaser; and references in this Act, in relation to any copyright, to the doing of anything with, or (as the case may be) without, the licence of the owner of the copyright shall be construed accordingly.
Prospective ownership of copyright
195.—(1) Where by an agreement made in relation to any future copyright, and signed by or on behalf of the prospective owner of the copyright, the prospective owner purports to assign the future copyright (wholly or partially) to another person (referred to in this subsection as the assignee), then if, on the coming into existence of the copyright, the assignee or a person claiming under him would, apart from this subsection be entitled as against all other persons to require the copyright to be vested in him (wholly or partially, as the case may be), the copyright shall, on its coming into existence, vest in the assignee or his successor in title accordingly by virtue of this subsection and without further assurance.
(2) Where, at the time when any copyright comes into existence, the person who, if he were then living, would be entitled to the copyright is dead, the copyright shall devolve as if it had subsisted immediately before his death and he had then been the owner of the copyright.
(3) Section 194(4) shall apply in relation to a licence granted by a prospective owner of any copyright as it applies in relation to a licence granted by the owner of a subsisting copyright, as if any reference in that subsection to the owner’s interest in the copyright included a reference to his prospective interest therein.
​Copyright to pass under will with unpublished work
196. Where under a bequest (whether specific or general) a person is entitled, beneficially or otherwise, to the manuscript of a literary, dramatic or musical work, or to an artistic work, and the work was not published before the death of the testator, the bequest shall, unless a contrary intention is indicated in the testator’s will or a codicil thereto, be construed as including the copyright in the work insofar as the testator was the owner of the copyright immediately before his death.
Provisions as to Government copyright
197.—(1) In the case of every original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work made by or under the direction or control of a Government department,—
    (a) if apart from this section copyright would not subsist in the work, copyright shall subsist therein by virtue of this subsection; and
    (b) in any case, the Government shall, subject to the provisions of this Part, be entitled to the copyright in the work.
(2) The Government shall, subject to the provisions of this Part, be entitled to the copyright in every original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work first published in Singapore, or in another country to which section 27 extends, if first published by or under the direction or control of the Government.
(3) Copyright in a literary, dramatic or musical work, to which the Government is entitled in accordance with subsection (1) or (2),—
    (a) where the work is unpublished, shall continue to subsist so long as the work remains unpublished; and
    (b) where the work is published, shall subsist (or, if copyright in the work subsisted immediately before its first publication, shall continue to subsist) until the end of the period of 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published, and shall then expire.
(4) Copyright in an artistic work to which the Government is entitled in accordance with this section shall continue to subsist until ​the end of the period of 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was made, and shall then expire:
Provided that where the work in question is an engraving or a photograph, the copyright shall continue to subsist until the end of the period of 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the engraving or photograph is first published.
(5) In the case of every sound recording or cinematograph film made by or under the direction or control of a Government department—
    (a) if apart from this section copyright would not subsist in the recording or film, copyright shall subsist therein by virtue of this subsection; and
    (b) in any case, shall, subject to the provisions of this Part, be entitled to the copyright in the recording or film; and it shall subsist for the same period as if it were copyright subsisting by virtue of, and owned in accordance with, Part III or IV, as the case may be.
(6) This section shall have effect subject to any agreement made by or on behalf of a Government department with the author of the work, or the maker of the sound recording or cinematograph film, as the case may be, whereby it is agreed that the copyright in the work, recording or film shall vest in the author or maker, or in another person designated in the agreement in that behalf.
(7) In relation to copyright subsisting by virtue of this section—
    (a) in the case of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, the provisions of Part III, with the exception of provisions thereof relating to the subsistence, duration or ownership of copyright; and
    (b) in the case of a sound recording, cinematograph film or cable programme, the provisions of Part IV, with the exception of provisions thereof relating to the subsistence or ownership of copyright,
shall apply as those provisions apply in relation to copyright subsisting by virtue of Part III or IV, as the case may be.
​(8) For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that section 12 of the Government Proceedings Act (which relates to infringements of industrial property by servants or agents of the Crown) shall apply to copyright under this Act (Cap. 21).
Use of copyright material for the service of the Government
198.—(1) The copyright in a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work or a published edition of such a work, or in a sound recording, cinematograph film, television broadcast, sound broadcast or cable programme, is not infringed by the Government or by a person authorised in writing by the Government doing any acts comprised in the copyright if the acts are done for the service of the Government.
(2) Where the Government has made an agreement or arrangement with the government of some other country for the supply to that country of goods required for the defence of that country—
    (a) the doing of any act in connection with the supply of those goods in pursuance of the agreement or arrangement; and
    (b) the sale to any person of such of those goods as are not required for the purposes of the agreement or arrangement,
shall, for the purposes of subsection (1) be each deemed to be for the service of the Government.
(3) Authority may be given under subsection (1) before or after the acts in respect of which the authority is given have been done, and may be given to a person notwithstanding that he had a licence granted by, or binding on, the owner of the copyright to do the acts.
(4) Where an act comprised in a copyright has been done under subsection (1) the Government shall as soon as possible, unless it appears to the Government that it would be contrary to the public interest to do so, inform the owner of the copyright, as prescribed, of the doing of the act and shall furnish him with such information as to the doing of the act as he from time to time reasonably requires.
(5) Where an act comprised in a copyright has been done under subsection (1), the terms for the doing of the act are such terms as are whether before or after the act is done, agreed between the ​Government and the owner of the copyright or, in default of agreement, as are fixed by the Copyright Tribunal.
(6) An agreement or licence (whether made or granted before or after the commencement of this Act) fixing the terms upon which a person other than the Government may do acts comprised in a copyright is inoperative with respect to the doing of those acts after the commencement of this Act, under subsection (1), unless the agreement or licence has been approved by the Minister.
(7) Where an article is sold and the sale is not by virtue of subsection (1), an infringement of a copyright, the purchaser of the article, and a person claiming through him, is entitled to deal with the article as if the Government were the owner of that copyright.
(8) An act done under subsection (1) does not constitute publication of a work or other subject-matter and shall not be taken into account in the application of any provision of this Act relating to the duration of any copyright.
(9) Where an exclusive licence is in force in relation to any copyright, subsections (1) to (8) have effect as if any reference in those subsections to the owner of the copyright were a reference to the exclusive licensee.
(10) The copying of the whole or a part of a work for the teaching purposes of an educational institution of, or under the control of the Government shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed not to be an act done for the service of the Government.
Reception of broadcasts or cable programmes
199.—(1) A person who, by the reception of a television broadcast, sound broadcast or cable programme, causes a literary, dramatic or musical work, or an adaptation of such work, to be seen, heard or seen and heard in public does not, by doing so, infringe the copyright, if any, in the work.
(2) A person who, by the reception of an authorised television broadcast or authorised cable programme, causes a cinematograph film to be seen, heard or seen and heard in public shall be treated, in any proceedings for infringement of the copyright (if any) in the film ​under Part IV, as if he had been the holder of a licence granted by the owner of that copyright to cause the film to be seen or heard in public by the reception of the broadcast or the cable programme.
(3) A person who, by the reception and immediate retransmission of an authorised television broadcast or sound broadcast causes a literary, dramatic or musical work or an adaptation of such a work, an artistic work or a cinematograph film programme to be included in a programme in a cable programme service shall be treated, in any proceedings for infringement of the copyright, if any, in the work or film, as if he had been the holder of a licence granted by the owner of that copyright to include the work, adaptation or film to be transmitted by him in any programme included in a cable programme service.
(4) If, in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (2) or (3), the person causing the cinematograph film to be seen or heard, or the work, adaptation or cinematograph film to be transmitted, as the case may be, infringed the copyright in question, by reason that the broadcast or cable programme was not an authorised broadcast or programme, proceedings shall not be brought against that person under this Act in respect of his infringement of that copyright, but it shall be taken into account in assessing damages in any proceedings against the maker of the broadcast or programme in respect of that copyright, insofar as that copyright was infringed by them in making the broadcast or programme.
(5) For the purposes of this section, a broadcast or cable programme shall be taken, in relation to a work, an adaptation of a work or a cinematograph film, to be an authorised broadcast or programme if, but only if, it is made by, or with the licence of, the owner of the copyright in the work or film.
Groundless threats of legal proceedings
200.—(1) Where a person, by means of circulars, advertisements or otherwise, threatens a person with an action or proceedings in respect of an infringement of copyright, then, whether the person making the threats is or is not the owner of the copyright or an exclusive licensee, a person aggrieved may bring an action against the first-mentioned person and may obtain a declaration to the effect that the threats are unjustifiable, and an injunction against the continuance of the threats, ​and may recover such damages (if any) as he has sustained, unless the first-mentioned person satisfies the court that the acts in respect of which the action or proceeding was threatened constituted, or, if done, would constitute, an infringement of copyright.
(2) The mere notification of the existence of a copyright does not constitute a threat of an action or proceeding within the meaning of this section.
(3) Nothing in this section shall render an advocate and solicitor liable to an action under this section in respect of an act done by him in his professional capacity on behalf of a client.
(4) The defendant in an action under this section may apply, by way of counterclaim, for relief to which he would be entitled in a separate action in respect of an infringement by the plaintiff of the copyright to which the threats relate and, in any such case, the provisions of this Act with respect to an action for infringement of a copyright are, mutatis mutandis, applicable in relation to the action.
Notation of copies and handicapped readers’ copies
201.—(1) In proceedings against a person or body for infringement of copyright in a work in connection with the making, by or on behalf of an institution, of a copy of the whole or a part of that work, the person or body is not entitled to rely on section 45, 46, 48, 52 or 54 as justification for the making of that copy unless, at or about the time the copy was made, there was made on the copy a notation—
    (a) stating that the copy was made on behalf of that institution and the date on which it was made; and
    (b) in the case of a copy that was made in reliance on section 54(4), stating that the copy is a prescribed reproduction made in reliance on that subsection.
(2) In proceedings against a person or body for infringement of copyright in a sound recording or a cinematograph film in connection with the making, by or on behalf or an institution of a copy of the sound recording or cinematograph film, the person or body is not entitled to rely on section 113 as justification for the making of the copy unless, at or about the time the copy was made, there was made ​on, or attached to, the copy a notation stating that the copy was made on behalf of that institution and setting out the date on which the copy was made.
(3) In proceedings against a person or body for infringement of copyright in a work in connection with the making, on behalf of an institution assisting handicapped readers, a record embodying a sound recording of the work, or of a part of the work, the person or body is not entitled to rely on section 54(1) unless, at the time the record was made, there was embodied on the record, immediately before the commencement of that sound recording, a sound recording of a prescribed message.
(4) A person who—
    (a) makes on a copy of the whole or a part of a work, a notation referred to in subsection (1); or
    (b) makes on, or attaches to, a copy of a sound recording or a cinematograph film a notation of the kind referred to in subsection (2); or
    (c) causes to be embodied on a record embodying a sound recording a message referred to in subsection (3),
being a notation of message that contains a statement that the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, is false or misleading in a material particular, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000.
(5) For the purposes of subsections (1), (2) and (3)—
    (a) where a copy of a work, a sound recording or a cinematograph film is made, or caused to be made, by an authorised officer of a library, or is made by or on behalf of the officer-in-charge of a library, being a library of an institution, the copy shall be deemed to have been made on behalf of the institution;
    (b) where a copy of a work, a sound recording or a cinematograph film is made, or caused to be made by an authorised officer of a library, or is made by or on behalf of ​the officer-in-charge of a library, being a library that is not a library of an institution, then—
       (i) the copy shall be deemed to have been made on behalf of the person or body administering the library; and
       (ii) those subsections apply as if a reference in those subsections to an institution included a reference to that person or body;
    (c) where a copy of a work, a sound recording or a cinematograph film is made, or caused to be made, by an authorised officer of archives, or is made by or on behalf of the officer-in-charge of archives, then—
       (i) the copy shall be deemed to have been made on behalf of the person or body administering the archives; and
       (ii) those subsections apply as if a reference in those subsections to an institution included a reference to that person or body;
    (d) where a copy, or a record embodying a sound recording, of a whole or of a part of a work, is made by or on behalf of the body administering an institution, the copy or record, as the case may be, shall be deemed to have been made on behalf of the institution; and
    (e) where a copy of a sound recording or cinematograph film is made by or on behalf of the body administering an institution, the copy shall be deemed to have been made on behalf of the institution.
(6) The production, in any proceedings—
    (a) for infringement of copyright in a work;
    (b) before the Copyright Tribunal on application made under section 52(11) or 54(10); or
    (c) for a contravention of a provision of this Act,
of a copy of a work, or of a part of a work, bearing a notation of the kind referred to in subsection (1) or (2), whichever is applicable, is prima facie evidence of the matters stated in the notation.
​(7) For the purposes of subsection (6), where a copy of a work or a part of a work bears a notation of a kind referred to in subsection (1), whichever is applicable, the notation shall, unless the contrary is proved, be deemed to have been made on the copy at or about the time the copy was made.
(8) The production, in any proceedings of a kind referred to in subsection (6), of a record embodying a sound recording of a work or a part of a work, being a record that also embodies a sound recording of a message of the kind referred to in subsection (3), is prima facie evidence of the matters stated in the message.
(9) For the purposes of subsection (8), where a record embodying a sound recording of a work or a part of a work also embodies a sound recording of a message of the kind referred to in subsection (3), the message shall, unless the contrary is proved, be deemed to have been embodied on the record at the time the record was made.
(10) The production, in any proceedings—
    (a) for infringement of copyright in a sound recording or a cinematograph film; or
    (b) for a contravention of this Act,
of a copy of a sound recording or a cinematograph film bearing, or to which there is attached, a notation of the kind referred to in subsection (2), is prima facie evidence of the matters stated in the notation.
(11) For the purposes of subsection (10), where a copy of a sound recording or a cinematograph film bears, or where there is attached to such a copy, a notation of the kind referred to in subsection (2), the notation shall, unless the contrary is proved, be deemed to have been made on or attached to the copy at or about the time the copy was made.
(12) In this section, “copy”, in relation to a work, or a part of a work, includes a microform copy, a Braille version, a large-print version, or a photographic version, of the work, or of the part of the work.
​Regulations
202.—(1) The Minister may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act prescribing all matters that are required to be prescribed or are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), the regulations made under this Act may provide for the keeping and retention of records and declarations in relation to copies of works made by libraries, archives or institutions and the deposit of such records and declarations with persons appointed by the Minister.
Repeal of Copyright Act 1911
203. The Copyright Act 1911, the Copyright Act (Cap. 187) and the Copyright (Gramophone Records and Government Broadcasting) Act (Cap. 188) are repealed.
Consequential amendment
204. Section 38 of the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation Act 1979 (Act 33 of 1979) is repealed.