25 November 2013
Jersey’s membership of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works has now been confirmed, making the Island the most recent jurisdiction to join the most widely recognised convention covering international copyright.
The confirmation comes after the successful completion of a project to update Jersey’s century-old copyright law. The new Intellectual Property (Unregistered Rights) (Jersey) Law, and subsequent membership of the Berne Convention, will ensure that creative content originating in Jersey will have automatic copyright protection in much of the world.
Economic Development Minister, Senator Alan Maclean, said “I am delighted to be able to announce this important milestone following our modernisation of a very out of date law. Membership of the Berne Convention means Jersey is now a part of the international framework that individuals and businesses look at when making decisions about where to locate and invest in creative areas like film and publishing. It will underpin our efforts to diversify the economy.”
Digital Jersey
Chairman of Digital Jersey, Paul Masterton, said “Intellectual property rights are crucial to many businesses in the digital sector. Our work at Digital Jersey is helped by the efforts of government to progress its programme to ensure all the laws are modern and fit for purpose. Having a badge of approval that Jersey’s new copyright law meets international standards will certainly help with Jersey’s development as a centre of digital excellence.”
gov.je