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16 1927

INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL PROPERTY (PROTECTION) ACT, 1927

PART VI.—COPYRIGHT.

Copyright.

154. —(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, copyright shall subsist in Saorstát Eireann for the term hereinafter mentioned in every original literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic work, if—

(a) in the case of a published work, the work was first published within Saorstát Eireann; and

(b) in the case of an unpublished work, the author was at the date of the making of the work a citizen of Saorstát Eireann or resident within Saorstát Eireann;

but in no other works, except so far as the protection conferred by this Act is extended by Orders thereunder relating to British dominions and to foreign countries:

Provided that the Governor-General may by Order made on the advice of the Executive Council direct that copyright subsisting in Saorstát Eireann under the provisions of this sub-section, in works the authors of which were at the date of the making of the work citizens of a country named in the Order with which no convention relating to copyright and binding on Saorstát Eireann exists and in respect of which no Order has been made under the provisions of section 175 (which relates to power to extend the benefit of this Part of this Act to works first published in a British dominion or foreign country) of this Act, shall be subject to such conditions or formalities (if any) as may be prescribed by the Order and to such modifications as regards the ownership of the copyright or otherwise as may appear necessary owing to the law of that country.

(2) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, “copyright” means the sole right to produce or reproduce the work or any substantial part thereof in any material form whatsoever, to perform, or in the case of a lecture to deliver, the work or any substantial part thereof in public; if the work is unpublished, to publish the work or any substantial part thereof; and shall include the sole right—

(a) to produce, reproduce, perform, or publish any translation of the work: provided that such right shall as regards translations into the Irish language cease to exist unless the author of the work or his legal representative shall have within a period of ten years from the date of the first publication of the work published or caused to be published in Saorstát Eireann a translation of the work into the Irish language;

(b) in the case of a dramatic work, to convert it into a novel or other non-dramatic work;

(c) in the case of a novel or other non-dramatic work, or of an artistic work, to convert it into a dramatic work, by way of performance in public or otherwise;

(d) in the case of a literary, dramatic, or musical work, to make any record, perforated roll, cinematograph film, or other contrivance by means of which the work may be mechanically performed or delivered,

and to authorise any such acts as aforesaid.

(3) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, publication, in relation to any work, means the issue of copies of the work to the public, and does not include the performance in public of a dramatic or musical work, the delivery in public of a lecture, the exhibition in public of an artistic work, or the construction of an architectural work of art, but, for the purposes of this provision, the issue of photographs and engravings of works of sculpture and architectural works of art shall not be deemed to be publication of such works.

(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 174 (which relates to the preservation of existing copyrights) of this Act, paragraph (a) of sub-section (2) of this section shall apply to copyright acquired before the 6th day of December, 1921, as well as to copyright acquired since that date under this Act.

Infringement of copyright.

155. —(1) Copyright in a work shall be deemed to be infringed by any person who, without the consent of the owner of the copyright, does anything the sole right to do which is by this Part of this Act conferred on the owner of the copyright: Provided that the following acts shall not constitute an infringement of copyright:—

(i) any fair dealing with any work for the purposes of private study, research, criticism, review, or newspaper summary;

(ii) where the author of an artistic work is not the owner of the copyright therein, the use by the author of any mould, cast, sketch, plan, model, or study made by him for the purpose of the work, provided that he does not thereby repeat or imitate the main design of that work;

(iii) the making or publishing of paintings, drawings, engravings, or photographs of a work of sculpture or artistic craftsmanship, if permanently situate in a public place or building, or the making or publishing of paintings, drawings, engravings, or photographs (which are not in the nature of architectural drawings or plans) of any architectural work of art;

(iv) the publication in a collection of prose or poetry or of both, bonâ fide intended for the use of schools and so described in the title and in any advertisements issued by the publisher, of passages not exceeding in each case one hundred lines from published literary works not themselves originally published for the use of schools in which copyright subsists: Provided that such passages shall not include passages taken from copyright works within five years from date of first publication and that not more than two of such passages from works by the same author are published by the same publisher in any one book, and that the sources from which such passages are taken are acknowledged;

(v) the publication in a newspaper of a report of a lecture delivered in public, unless the report is prohibited by conspicuous written or printed notice affixed before and maintained during the lecture at or about the main entrance of the building in which the lecture is given, and, except whilst the building is being used for public worship, in a position near the lecturer; but nothing in this paragraph shall affect the provisions in paragraph (i) as to newspaper summaries;

(vi) save in the case of a work which was first published after the commencement of this Part of this Act, the reading or recitation in public by one person of any reasonable extract from any published work;

(vii) in the case of a work which was first published after the commencement of this Part of this Act, the reading or recitation in public as part of a lecture, address, sermon, or speech of any reasonable extract from the work.

(2) Copyright in a work shall also be deemed to be infringed by any person who—

(a) sells or lets for hire, or by way of trade exposes or offers for sale or hire; or

(b) distributes either for the purposes of trade or to such an extent as to affect prejudicially the owner of the copyright; or

(c) by way of trade exhibits in public; or

(d) imports for sale or hire into Saorstát Eireann;

any work which to his knowledge infringes copyright or would infringe copyright if it had been made within Saorstát Eireann.

(3) Save in the case of a work which was first published after the commencement of this Part of this Act, copyright in a work shall also be deemed to be infringed by any person who for his private profit permits a theatre or other place of entertainment to be used for the performance in public of the work without the consent of the owner of the copyright, unless he was not aware and had no reasonable ground for suspecting that the performance would be an infringement of copyright.

(4) In the case of a work first published after the commencement of this Part of this Act, copyright shall also be deemed to be infringed by any person who permits a theatre, hall, room, or other place to be used for the public performance for profit of the work without the consent of the owner of the copyright, unless such person was not aware and had no reasonable grounds for suspecting that the performance would be an infringement of copyright.

(5) Every person who permits a theatre, hall, room, or other place to be used for a performance which is, under the next preceding sub-section of this section, an infringement of copyright shall be guilty of an offence under this section, and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds.

(6) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 174 (which relates to the preservation of existing copyrights) of this Act, paragraph (iv) of sub-section (1) of this section shall apply to copyright acquired before the 6th day of December, 1921, as well as to copyright acquired since that date under this Act.

Term of copyright.

156. —The term for which copyright shall subsist shall, except as otherwise expressly provided by this Act, be the life of the author and a period of fifty years after his death:

Provided that at any time after the expiration of twenty five years or, in the case of a work in which copyright subsisted on the 16th day of December, 1911, thirty years from the death of the author of a published work, copyright in the work shall not be deemed to be infringed by the reproduction of the work for sale if the person reproducing the work proves that he has given the appointed notice in writing of his intention to reproduce the work, and that he has paid in the appointed manner to, or for the benefit of, the owner of the copyright royalties in respect of all copies of the work sold by him calculated at the rate of ten per cent. on the price at which he publishes the work; and, for the purposes of this proviso, the Minister may make regulations appointing the mode in which notices are to be given, and the particulars to be given in such notices, and the mode, time, and frequency of the payment of royalties, including (if he thinks fit) regulations requiring payment in advance or otherwise securing the payment of royalties.

Compulsory licences.

157. —If at any time after the death of the author of a literary, dramatic, or musical work which has been published or performed in public a complaint is made to the Minister that the owner of the copyright in the work has refused to republish or to allow the republication of the work or has refused to allow the performance in public of the work, and that by reason of such refusal the work is withheld from the public, the owner of the copyright may be ordered to grant a licence to reproduce the work or perform the work in public, as the case may be, on such terms and subject to such conditions as the Minister may think fit.

Ownership of copyright, etc.

158. —(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the author of a work shall be the first owner of the copyright therein:

Provided that—

(a) where, in the case of an engraving, photograph, or portrait, the plate or other original was ordered by some other person and was made for valuable consideration in pursuance of that order, then, in the absence of any agreement to the contrary, the person by whom such plate or other original was ordered shall be the first owner of the copyright; and

(b) where the author was in the employment of some other person under a contract of service or apprenticeship and the work was made in the course of his employment by that person, the person by whom the author was employed shall, in the absence of any agreement to the contrary, be the first owner of the copyright, but where the work is an article or other contribution to a newspaper, magazine, or similar periodical, there shall, in the absence of any agreement to the contrary, be deemed to be reserved to the author a right to restrain the publication of the work, otherwise than as part of a newspaper, magazine, or similar periodical.

(2) The owner of the copyright in any work may assign the right, either wholly or partially, and either generally or subject to limitation as to place or otherwise and either for the whole term of the copyright or for any part thereof, and may grant any interest in the right by licence, but no such assignment or grant shall be valid unless it is in writing signed by the owner of the right in respect of which the assignment or grant is made, or by his duly authorised agent:

Provided that, where the author of a work is the first owner of the copyright therein, no assignment of the copyright, and no grant of any interest therein, made by him (otherwise than by will) after the passing of this Act, shall be operative to vest in the assignee or grantee any rights with respect to the copyright in the work beyond the expiration of twenty-five years from the death of the author, and the reversionary interest in the copyright expectant on the termination of the period shall, on the death of the author, notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary, devolve on his legal personal representatives as part of his estate, and any agreement entered in to by him as to the disposition of such reversionary interest shall be null and void, but nothing in this proviso shall be construed as applying to the assignment of the copyright in a collective work or a licence to publish a work or part of a work as part of a collective work.

(3) Where, under any partial assignment of copyright, the assignee becomes entitled to any right comprised in copyright, the assignee as respects the right so assigned, and the assignor as respects the rights not assigned, shall be treated for the purposes of this Act as the owner of the copyright, and the provisions of this Act shall have effect accordingly.

Civil remedies for infringement of copyright.

159. —(1) Where copyright in any work has been infringed, the owner of the copyright shall, except as otherwise provided by this Act, be entitled to all such remedies by way of injunction, damages, accounts, and otherwise, as are or may be conferred by law for the infringement of a right.

(2) The costs of all parties in any proceedings in respect of the infringement of copyright shall be in the absolute discretion of the court.

(3) In any action for infringement of copyright in any work, the work shall be presumed to be a work in which copyright subsists and the plaintiff shall be presumed to be the owner of the copyright, unless the defendant puts in issue the existence of the copyright, or, as the case may be, the title of the plaintiff, and where any such question is in issue, then—

(a) if a name purporting to be that of the author of the work is printed or otherwise indicated thereon in the usual manner, the person whose name is so printed or indicated shall, unless the contrary is proved, be presumed to be the author of the work;

(b) if no name is so printed or indicated, or if the name so printed or indicated is not the author's true name or the name by which he is commonly known, and a name purporting to be that of the publisher or proprietor of the work is printed or otherwise indicated thereon in the usual manner the person whose name is so printed or indicated shall, unless the contrary is proved, be presumed to be the owner of the copyright in the work for the purposes of proceedings in respect of the infringement of copyright therein.

Rights in respect of infringing copies, etc.

160. —All infringing copies of any work in which copyright subsists, or of any substantial part thereof, and all plates used or intended to be used for the production of such infringing copies, shall be deemed to be the property of the owner of the copyright, who accordingly may take proceedings for the recovery of the possession thereof or in respect of the conversion thereof.

Exemption of innocent infringer from certain liabilities.

161. —Where proceedings are taken in respect of the infringement of the copyright in any work and the defendant in his defence alleges that he was not aware of the existence of the copyright in the work, the plaintiff shall not be entitled to any remedy other than an injunction in respect of the infringement if the defendant proves that at the date of the infringement he was not aware and had no reasonable ground for suspecting that copyright subsisted in the work.

Restriction on remedies in the case of architecture.

162. —(1) Where the construction of a building or other structure which infringes or which, if completed, would infringe the copyright in some other work has been commenced, the owner of the copyright shall not be entitled to obtain an injunction to restrain the construction of such building or structure or to order its demolition.

(2) Such of the other provisions of this Act as provide that an infringing copy of a work shall be deemed to be the property of the owner of the copyright, or as impose summary penalties, shall not apply in any case to which this section applies.

Limitation of actions.

163. —An action in respect of infringement of copyright shall not be commenced after the expiration of three years next after the infringement.

Penalties for dealing with infringing copies.

164. —(1) If any person knowingly—

(a) makes for sale or hire any infringing copy of a work in which copyright subsists; or

(b) sells or lets for hire, or by way of trade exposes or offers for sale or hire any infringing copy of any such work; or

(c) distributes infringing copies of any such work either for the purposes of trade or to such an extent as to affect prejudicially the owner of the copyright; or

(d) by way of trade exhibits in public any infringing copy of any such work; or

(e) imports for sale or hire into Saorstát Eireann any infringing copy of any such work;

he shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding forty shillings for every copy dealt with in contravention of this section, but not exceeding fifty pounds in respect of the same transaction; or, in the case of a second or subsequent offence, either to such fine or at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a term not exceeding two months.

(2) If any person knowingly makes or has in his possession any plate for the purpose of making infringing copies of any work in which copyright subsists, or knowingly and for his private profit causes any such work to be performed in public without the consent of the owner of the copyright, he shall be guilty of an offence under this Act, and be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds, or, in the case of a second or subsequent offence, either to such fine, or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a term not exceeding two months.

(3) The court before which any such proceedings are taken may, whether the alleged offender is convicted or not, order that all copies of the work or all plates in the possession of the alleged offender, which appear to it to be infringing copies or plates for the purpose of making infringing copies, be destroyed or delivered up to the owner of the copyright or otherwise dealt with as the court may think fit.

(4) Nothing in this section shall, as respects musical works, affect the provisions of Part VII . of this Act.

Importation of copies.

165. —(1) Copies made out of Saorstát Eireann of any work in which copyright subsists which if made in Saorstát Eireann would infringe copyright, and as to which the owner of the copyright gives notice in writing by himself or his agent to the Revenue Commissioners, that he is desirous that such copies should not be imported into Saorstát Eireann, shall not be so imported, and shall, subject to the provisions of this section, be deemed to be included in the table of prohibitions and restrictions contained in section forty-two of the Customs Consolidation Act, 1876, and that section shall apply accordingly.

(2) Before detaining any such copies or taking any further proceedings with a view to the forfeiture thereof under the law relating to the Customs, the Revenue Commissioners may require the regulations under this section, whether as to information, conditions, or other matters, to be complied with, and may satisfy themselves in accordance with those regulations that the copies are such as are prohibited by this section to be imported.

(3) The Revenue Commissioners may make regulations, either general or special, respecting the detention or forfeiture of copies the importation of which is prohibited by this section, and the conditions, if any, to be fulfilled before such detention and forfeiture, and may, by such regulations, determine the information, notices, and security to be given, and the evidence requisite for any of the purposes of this section, and the mode of verification of such evidence.

(4) The regulations may apply to copies of all works the importation of copies of which is prohibited by this section, or different regulations may be made respecting different classes of such works.

(5) The regulations may provide for the informant reimbursing the Revenue Commissioners all expenses and damages incurred in respect of any detention made on his information, and of any proceedings consequent on such detention; and may provide for notices under any enactment repealed by this Act being treated as notices given under this section.

(6) The foregoing provisions of this section shall have effect as if they were part of the Customs Consolidation Act, 1876.

Works of joint authors.

166. —(1) In the case of a work of joint authorship, copyright shall subsist during the life of the author who first dies and for a term of fifty years after his death, or during the life of the author who dies last, whichever period is the longer, and references in this Act to the period after the expiration of any specified number of years from the death of the author shall be construed as references to the period after the expiration of the like number of years from the death of the author who dies first or after the death of the author who dies last, whichever period may be the shorter, and in the provisions of this Act with respect to the grant of compulsory licences a reference to the date of the death of the author who dies last shall be substituted for the reference to the date of the death of the author.

(2) Where, in the case of a work of joint authorship, some one or more of the joint authors do not satisfy the conditions conferring copyright laid down by this Act, the work shall be treated for the purposes of this Act as if the other author or authors had been the sole author or authors thereof:

Provided that the term of the copyright shall be the same as it would have been if all the authors had satisfied such conditions as aforesaid.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, “a work of joint authorship” means a work produced by the collaboration of two or more authors in which the contribution of one author is not distinct from the contribution of the other author or authors.

(4) Where a married woman and her husband are joint authors of a work the interest of such married woman therein shall be her separate property.

Posthumous works.

167. —(1) In the case of a literary, dramatic, or musical work, or an engraving, in which copyright subsists at the date of the death of the author or, in the case of a work of joint authorship, at or immediately before the date of the death of the author who dies last, but which has not been published, nor, in the case of a dramatic or musical work, been performed in public, nor, in the case of a lecture, been delivered in public, before that date, copyright shall subsist till publication, or performance or delivery in public, whichever may first happen, and for a term of fifty years thereafter, and the proviso to section 156 which relates to term of copyright) of this Act shall, in the case of such a work, apply as if the author had died at the date of such publication or performance or delivery in public as aforesaid.

(2) The ownership of an author's manuscript after his death, where such ownership has been acquired under a testamentary disposition made by the author and the manuscript is of a work which has not been published nor performed in public nor delivered in public, shall be primâ facie proof of the copyright being with the owner of the manuscript.

Copyright in Government publications.

168. —(1) The copyright in every work prepared or published by or under the direction or control of the late Provisional Government of Ireland or any Minister or Department thereof shall, subject to any agreement with the author, belong to the Government of Saorstát Eireann, and shall continue for a period of fifty years from the date of the first publication of the work.

(2) The copyright in every work prepared, printed, or published (whether before or after the commencement of this Part of this Act) by or under the direction of the Government of Saorstát Eireann or any Minister or Department thereof or by or under the superintendence or authority of the Stationery Office shall, subject to any agreement with the author thereof, belong to the Government of Saorstát Eireann and shall continue for a period of fifty years from the date of the first publication of the work.

Copyright in mechanical musical instruments.

169. —(1) Copyright shall subsist in records, perforated rolls, and other contrivances by means of which sounds may be mechanically reproduced, in like manner as if such contrivances were musical works, but the term of copyright shall be fifty years from the making of the original plate from which the contrivance was directly or indirectly derived, and the person who was the owner of such original plate at the time when such plate was made shall be deemed to be the author of the work, and, where such owner is a body corporate, the body corporate shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act to reside within Saorstát Eireann if it has established a place of business within Saorstát Eireann.

(2) It shall not be deemed to be an infringement of copyright in any musical work for any person to make within Saorstát Eireann records, perforated rolls, or other contrivances by means of which the work may be mechanically performed, if such person proves—

(a) that such contrivances have previously been made by, or with the consent or acquiescence of, the owner of the copyright in the work; and

(b) that he has given the prescribed notice of his intention to make the contrivances, and has paid in the prescribed manner to, or for the benefit of, the owner of the copyright in the work royalties in respect of all such contrivances sold by him, calculated at the rate hereinafter mentioned:

Provided that—

(i) nothing in this provision shall authorise any alterations in, or omissions from, the work reproduced, unless contrivances reproducing the work subject to similar alterations and omissions have been previously made by, or with the consent or acquiescence of, the owner of the copyright, or unless such alterations or omissions are reasonably necessary for the adaptation of the work to the contrivances in question; and

(ii) for the purposes of this provision, a musical work shall be deemed to include any words so closely associated therewith as to form part of the same work, but shall not be deemed to include a contrivance by means of which sounds may be mechanically reproduced.

(3) The rate at which such royalties as aforesaid are to be calculated shall be five per cent. on the ordinary retail selling price of the contrivance calculated in the prescribed manner, so, however, that the royalty payable in respect of a contrivance shall, in no case, be less than a halfpenny for each separate musical work in which copyright subsists reproduced thereon, and, where the royalty calculated as aforesaid includes a fraction of a farthing, such fraction shall be reckoned as a farthing:

Provided that, if, at any time after the expiration of seven years from the commencement of this Part of this Act, it appears to the Minister that such rate as aforesaid is no longer equitable, the Minister may, after holding a public inquiry, make an order either decreasing or increasing that rate to such an extent as in the circumstances may seem just, but any order so made shall be provisional only and shall not have any effect unless and until confirmed by a resolution passed by each House of the Oireachtas; but, where an order revising the rate has been so made and confirmed, no further revision shall be made before the expiration of fourteen years from the date of the last revision.

(4) If any such contrivance is made reproducing two or more different works in which copyright subsists and the owners of the copyright therein are different persons, the sums payable by way of royalties under this section shall be apportioned amongst the several owners of the copyright in such proportions as, failing agreement, may be determined by arbitration.

(5) When any such contrivances by means of which a musical work may be mechanically performed have been made, then, for the purposes of this section, the owner of the copyright in the work shall, in relation to any person who makes the appointed inquiries, be deemed to have given his consent to the making of such contrivances if he fails to reply to such inquiries within the appointed time.

(6) For the purposes of this section, the Minister may make regulations appointing anything which under this section is to be appointed, and appointing the mode in which notices are to be given and the particulars to be given in such notices, and the mode, time, and frequency of the payment of royalties, and any such regulations may, if the Minister thinks fit, include regulations requiring payment in advance or otherwise securing the payment of royalties.

(7) In the case of musical works published before the first day of July 1912 the foregoing provisions shall have effect, subject to the following modifications and additions:—

(a) the conditions as to the previous making by, or with the consent or acquiescence of, the owner of the copyright in the work, and the restrictions as to alterations in or omissions from the work, shall not apply;

(b) the rate of two and one-half per cent. shall be substituted for the rate of five per cent. as the rate at which royalties are to be calculated;

(c) notwithstanding any assignment made before the 16th day of December, 1911, of the copyright in a musical work, any rights conferred by the Copyright Act, 1911, or by this Act in respect of the making, or authorising the making, of contrivances by means of which the work may be mechanically performed shall belong to the author or his legal personal representatives and not to the assignee, and the royalties aforesaid shall be payable to, and for the benefit of, the author of the work or his legal personal representatives;

(d) where the work is a work on which copyright is conferred by an order under this Part of this Act relating to a British dominion or a foreign country, the copyright so conferred shall not, except to such extent as may be provided by the order, include any rights with respect to the making of records, perforated rolls, or other contrivances by means of which the work may be mechanically performed.

(8) Notwithstanding anything in this Act, where a record, perforated roll, or other contrivance by means of which sounds may be mechanically reproduced has been made before the commencement of this Part of this Act, copyright shall, as from such commencement, subsist therein in like manner and for the like term as if this Part of this Act had been in force at the date of the making of the original plate from which the contrivance was directly or indirectly derived:

Provided that—

(i) the person who, at the commencement of this Part of this Act, is the owner of such original plate shall be the first owner of such copyright; and

(ii) nothing in this provision shall be construed as conferring copyright in any such contrivance if the making thereof would have infringed copyright in some other such contrivance, if this provision had been in force at the time of the making of the first-mentioned contrivance.

Reports of political speeches.

170. —Notwithstanding anything in this Act, it shall not be an infringement of copyright in an address of a political nature delivered at a public meeting to publish a report thereof in a newspaper.

Copyright in photographs.

171. —The term for which copyright shall subsist in photographs shall be fifty years from the making of the original negative from which the photograph was directly or indirectly derived, and the person who was owner of such negative at the time when such negative was made shall be deemed to be the author of the work, and, where such owner is a body corporate, the body corporate shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act to reside within Saorstát Eireann if it has established a place of business within Saorstát Eireann.

Application of this Part of this Act to registered designs.

172. —(1) This Part of this Act shall apply to designs which though capable of being registered under Part III . of this Act are not used or intended to be used as models or patterns to be multiplied by any industrial process, and the general rules made by the Minister under Part V . of this Act may determine the conditions under which a design shall be deemed to be used for such purposes as aforesaid.

(2) Subject to the provisions of the foregoing sub-section and save as is otherwise provided in Part VII . of this Act, this Part of this Act shall not apply to designs capable of being registered under Part III . of this Act.

Works of foreign authors.

173. —If it appears to the Governor-General of Saorstát Eireann, acting on the advice of the Executive Council, that a British dominion or a foreign country does not give, or has not undertaken to give, adequate protection to the works of Saorstát Eireann authors, it shall be lawful for the Governor-General by Order made on the advice of the Executive Council to direct that such of the provisions of this Part of this Act as confer copyright on works first published within Saorstát Eireann shall not apply to works published after the date specified in the Order, the authors whereof are subjects or citizens of such British dominion or foreign country, and are not resident in Saorstát Eireann, and thereupon those provisions shall not apply to such works.

Preservation of existing copyrights.

174. —(1) The repeal of the Copyright Act, 1911, by this Act shall not save as is otherwise expressly provided in this Part of this Act add to, derogate from, or otherwise affect any copyright or other right acquired before the 6th day of December, 1921, under or by virtue of the Copyright Act, 1911, or any order made thereunder.

(2) Section 4 (which relates to repeals) of this Act shall, in so far as it relates to the repeal of the Copyright Act, 1911, be deemed to have had force and effect as from the 6th day of December, 1921, and this Part of this Act shall be deemed to have had force and effect as from that date: Provided that—

(i) notwithstanding anything contained in section 163 (which relates to limitation of actions) of this Act an action in respect of an infringement of copyright between the 6th day of December, 1921 and the commencement of this Part of this Act may be commenced within three years after the commencement of this Part of this Act but not later, and

(ii) the provisions of section 172 (which relates to the application of this Part of this Act to registered designs) of this Act shall not have force and effect until the commencement of this Part of this Act.

Power to extend the benefit of this Part of this Act to works first published in a British dominion or foreign country.

175. —(1) The Governor-General may by Order made on the advice of the Executive Council direct that this Part of this Act (except such parts, if any, thereof as may be specified in the Order) shall apply—

(a) to works first published in a British dominion or a foreign country to which the Order relates, in like manner as if they were first published within Saorstát Eireann;

(b) to literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, or any class thereof the authors whereof were at the time of the making of the work subjects or citizens of a British dominion or a foreign country to which the Order relates, in like manner as if the authors were citizens of Saorstát Eireann;

(c) in respect of residence in a British dominion or a foreign country to which the Order relates, in like manner as if such residence were residence within Saorstát Eireann;

and thereupon, subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act and of the Order, this Act shall apply accordingly:

Provided that—

(i) before making an order under this section in respect of a British dominion or a foreign country (other than a dominion or a country with which a convention relating to copyright and binding on Saorstát Eireann exists) the Governor-General acting on the advice of the Executive Council shall be satisfied that that British dominion or foreign country has made, or has undertaken to make, such provisions, if any, as it appears to the Governor-General acting on the advice of the Executive Council expedient to require for the protection of works entitled to copyright under the provisions of this Part of this Act;

(ii) the order may provide that the enjoyment of the rights conferred by this Part of this Act shall be subject to the accomplishment of such conditions and formalities (if any) as may be prescribed by the order;

(iii) in applying the provisions of this Part of this Act as to ownership of copyright, the order may make such modifications as appear necessary having regard to the law of the foreign country;

(iv) in applying the provisions of this Part of this Act as to existing works, the order may make such modifications as appear necessary, and may provide that nothing in those provisions as so applied shall be construed as reviving any right of preventing the production or importation of any translation in any case where the right has ceased by virtue of section 5 of the International Copyright Act, 1886.

(2) An order under this section may extend to all the several countries named or described therein.

Abrogation of common law rights.

176. —No person shall be entitled to copyright or any similar right in any literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work, whether published or unpublished, otherwise than under and in accordance with the provisions of this Act, or of any other statutory enactment for the time being in force, but nothing in this section shall be construed as abrogating any right or jurisdiction to restrain a breach of trust or confidence.

Definitions and interpretation.

177. —(1) In this Part of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—

Literary work” includes maps, charts, plans, tables, and compilations;

Dramatic work” includes any piece for recitation, choreographic work, or entertainment in dumb show the scenic arrangement or acting form of which is fixed in writing or otherwise, and any cinematograph production where the arrangement or acting form or the combination of incidents represented give the work an original character;

Artistic work” includes works of painting, drawing, sculpture, and artistic craftsmanship, and architectural works of art and engravings and photographs;

Work of sculpture” includes casts and models;

Architectural work of art” means any building or structure having an artistic character or design, in respect of such character or design, or any model for such building or structure, provided that the protection afforded by this Act shall be confined to the artistic character and design, and shall not extend to processes or methods of construction;

Engravings” include etchings, lithographs, wood-cuts, prints, and other similar works, not being photographs;

Photograph” includes photo-lithograph and any work produced by any process analogous to photography;

Cinematograph” includes any work produced by any process analogous to cinematography;

Collective work” means—

(a) an encyclopædia, dictionary, year book, or similar work, and

(b) a newspaper, review, magazine, or similar periodical, and

(c) any work written in distinct parts by different authors, or in which works or parts of works of different authors are incorporated;

Infringing” when applied to a copy of a work in which copyright subsists, means any copy, including any colourable imitation, made, or imported in contravention of the provisions of this Act;

Performance” means any acoustic representation of a work and any visual representation of any dramatic action in a work, including such a representation made by means of any mechanical instrument;

Delivery” in relation to a lecture, includes delivery by means of any mechanical instrument;

Plate” includes any stereotype or other plate, stone, block, mould, matrix, transfer, or negative used or intended to be used for printing or reproducing copies of any work, and any matrix or other appliance by which records, perforated rolls or other contrivances for the acoustic representation of the work are or are intended to be made;

Lecture” includes address, speech, and sermon.

(2) For the purposes of this Part of this Act (other than those relating to infringements of copyright), a work shall not be deemed to be published or performed in public, and a lecture shall not be deemed to be delivered in public, if published, performed in public, or delivered in public, without the consent or acquiescence of the author, his executors, administrators, or assigns.

(3) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, a work shall be deemed to be first published within Saorstát Eireann, notwithstanding that it has been published simultaneously in some other place, unless the publication in Saorstát Eireann is colourable only and is not intended to satisfy the reasonable requirements of the public, and a work shall be deemed to be published simultaneously in two places if the time between the publication in one such place and the publication in the other place does not exceed fourteen days, or such longer period as may for the time being be fixed by order of the Executive Council.

(4) Where, in the case of an unpublished work, the making of the work has extended over a considerable period, the conditions of this Part of this Act conferring copyright shall be deemed to have been complied with if the author was during any substantial part of that period a citizen of Saorstát Eireann or a resident within Saorstát Eireann.

(5) For the purposes of the provisions of this Part of this Act as to residence, an author of a work shall be deemed to be a resident in Saorstát Eireann if he is domiciled in Saorstát Eireann, and to be resident in any other state or country if he is domiciled in that state or country.