The Curious Case of Computer-Generated Works under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

Abstract

Under section 9(3) of the Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988, works that are ‘computer generated’ (and which have no human author) will be protected by copyright. Ownership of the copyright vests in the person who has made the necessary ‘arrangements’ for the work’s creation. This article introduces two questions in relation to section 9(3). Firstly, how does the section fit with copyright’s originality requirement? Secondly, what is the justification for the provision? In exploring these questions the article develops a novel criticism of section 9(3): the section is either unnecessary or unjustifiably extends legal protection to a class of works which belong in the public domain. While previous literature has praised section 9(3) and suggested that it ought to be adopted more widely, this article concludes that other jurisdictions ought to think carefully before adopting this provision.

[A revised version of this paper appears in [2021] I.P.Q, Issue 2, 120-129]

Keywords: Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, Copyright