WIPO Copyright Treaty (1996)

The WCT is a special agreement under the Berne Convention.

Any party to the Berne Convention must at least of agreed to the 1971 revision to the Berne Convention.

The 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty treats specifically two contemporary subject matters as eligible for copyright. Articles 4 and 5 of the WIPO Copyright Treaty:

"Computer programs are protected as literary works .... Such protection applies to computer programs, whatever may be the mode or form of their expression.

"Compilations of data or other material, in any form, which by reason of the selection or arrangement of their contents constitute intellectual creations, are protected as such. This protection does not extend to the data or the material itself and is without prejudice to any copyright subsisting in the data or material contained in the compilation."

The Treaty does have teeth, albeit tiny little incisors typical of international agreements. According to the terms of the Treaty, article 14:

"Contracting Parties shall ensure that enforcement procedures are available under their law so as to permit effective action against any act of infringement of rights covered by this Treaty, including expeditious remedies to prevent infringements and remedies which constitute a deterrent to further infringements."

REFERENCES:

• Duhaime, Lloyd, Berne Convention on International Copyright (1886)
• Duhaime, Lloyd, Copyright Law
• Duhaime, Lloyd, Dictionary of International Law
• Duhaime, Lloyd, Legal Definition of Copyright
• Duhaime, Lloyd, Universal Copyright Convention (1952)
• WIPO Copyright Treaty (1996), full text, at www.wipo.int