When multiple people collaborate on a work, the rights to exploit and use it are often misunderstood. Many co-authors believe they can freely publish, commercialize, or allow others to use the work without consulting the others. So, what does the law say in this case? Let’s explore whether co-authors can independently exploit a work in the article below!
What is Co-authorship?
The concept of co-authorship is not just a descriptive term in creative activity, but a concept with significant legal implications in determining rights and obligations regarding a work.
In practice, many people believe that simply “participating” in the creation process is enough to be considered a co-author. However, intellectual property law sets very strict criteria for determining this status.
Clause 1, Article 38 of the 2022 Intellectual Property Law clearly states: “Co-authors are those who jointly and directly create a work.”
This regulation emphasizes two mandatory elements:
- Jointly participating in the creation: The element of “directly creating” is a core condition. The law only recognizes co-authorship for those who actually create the creative content expressed in the work.
- Creating a joint work: A co-authored work must be the result of a process of jointly developing the content, jointly shaping the structure, and jointly developing ideas into a complete product.
This means that not just anyone involved in the work is considered a co-author.
Examples:
- Two people co-write the content of a book → co-authors
- One person writes, another proofreads → not co-authors
- One person provides the idea, another expresses it as a complete work → the person who expresses it is the author
Many disputes arise due to confusion between the person assisting and the person directly creating the work. Therefore, correctly understanding the concept of co-authorship from the outset not only helps determine the correct rights, but is also an important basis for avoiding legal risks when exploiting and using the work later.
Is it permissible to freely exploit a work when co-authored?
In reality, many copyright disputes arise not from who is a co-author, but from not understanding what type of co-authorship the work falls under.
Based on Clause 2, Article 38 of the 2022 Intellectual Property Law: “Copyright in a co-authored work shall be exercised according to the agreement of the co-authors; in cases where the work has separate parts that can be used independently, each co-author has the right to use that separate part without infringing on the rights of the other co-authors.”
This regulation shows that the law does not view all co-authored works in the same way. Instead, the law divides them into two completely different cases in terms of legal nature, leading to completely different exploitation rights.
The answer to “Can a co-author freely exploit a work?” depends entirely on the type of work. The difference between an inseparable work and a work with separate parts will determine whether a co-author can freely exploit it or not.
Case 1: Inseparable Co-authored Works (Unified Works)
This is the most common type of work in practice. The defining characteristic of this type of work is that the contributions of the co-authors blend together, forming a single entity, to the point where it’s impossible to define the creative boundaries of each individual for independent use.
Examples:
- A song with lyrics and music written by two people
- A film script with content created by a group of people
- A comic book series with storyline and characters created by multiple people
The contributions to the work cannot be separated for independent use. Therefore, for this type of work, the property rights are shared by all co-authors; no single co-author can independently exploit the entire work. All of the following actions require the consent of all co-authors:
- Copying
- Distribution, publishing
- Uploading online
- Adaptation, modification
- Commercialization
Even if you are the largest contributor of content, the original owner, or the registered copyright holder, you do not have the right to exploit it independently.
Case 2: Co-authored works with separate parts that can be used independently
Contrary to the above case, this type of work is characterized by the fact that each person’s creative part exists relatively independently and can be separated without affecting the value of the remaining part.
Examples:
- A book with many chapters, each written by a different person
- A collection of short stories by multiple authors
- A document set with many independent parts
In this case, each person’s creative part can be separated without affecting the others’ parts. In that case, each co-author has the right to exploit their own portion, provided that:
- They do not use another author’s work.
- They do not infringe upon the rights of other co-authors.
Example: You wrote chapter 3 of a book with 10 chapters written by 10 people. You can publish chapter 3 separately under your name.
The above is the article “Is it permissible to freely exploit a work when co-authored?”. Correctly identifying the type of co-authored work and having a clear agreement from the beginning not only helps protect the rights of each party, but is also an effective way to prevent legal disputes arising during the use and commercialization of the work.
Sincerely,
FAQ
No. Copyright arises from the moment the work is created and expressed in a certain physical form, regardless of registration. However, registering copyright in the names of all co-authors will be important legal evidence in case of disputes.
The remaining co-authors have the right to request the cessation of the infringing act, demand an apology, compensation for damages, or file a lawsuit in court in accordance with the provisions of the Intellectual Property Law.