QuestionsQuestions (Act No. 3134)
Act No. 3134 is an act “to protect intellectual property” and is called the “Copyright Law of the Philippine Islands.”
A citizen of the Philippine Islands or of the United States may secure copyright for works falling within the enumerated classes of work.
Examples include: (a) books and compilations; (b) periodicals; (c) lectures/sermons/addresses/dissertations; (d) dramatic or dramatico-musical compositions; (e) musical compositions; (f) maps/plans/sketches/charts/drawings/designs; (j) photographs/engravings/lithographs/cinematographic pictures; (k) prints/pictorial illustrations; and (m) other articles and writings.
No. Section 2 expressly provides that any error in classification shall not invalidate or impair the copyright protection secured under the Act.
The proprietor has exclusive rights to: (a) print/reprint/publish/copy/distribute/multiply/sell and make photo-related reproductions of the work; (b) make translations/versions/extracts/arrangements/adaptations and complete/execute models/designs; (c) exhibit/perform/represent/produce/reproduce the work in any manner for profit or otherwise (with rules on manuscripts/records if not reproduced in copies for sale); and (d) make any other use/disposition consistent with laws of the land.
They are considered the property of the publishers.
Lines/passages/paragraphs may be quoted/cited/reproduced for comment, dissertation, or criticism. News items, editorial paragraphs, and periodical articles may also be reproduced unless they contain a notice that publication is reserved or copyrighted—provided the source/original is cited. Also, parts of little extent of musical works may be reproduced.
Copyright protects copyrightable component parts and all matter therein, without extending/diminishing duration/scope of such copyright. For composite works, the proprietor gets all rights he would have if each part were individually copyrighted, but if component parts were already copyrighted, the former copyright is subservient to the latter.
Collections/compilations/abridgments/adaptations/commentaries/critical studies/abstracts/arrangements/dramatizations/translations and other versions produced with consent are regarded as new works subject to copyright; however, publication of new works does not affect subsisting copyright on the original matter nor imply an exclusive right to use the original work beyond what is legally allowed.
Copyright does not subsist in (1) the original of any work in the public domain, (2) any publication and official document of the Philippine Government, or (3) any reprint of such, or in certain court/tribunal/public meeting speeches, lectures, sermons, addresses, and dissertations pronounced or read in those settings.
Copyright is secured by registration of the claim, publication with the required copyright notice on each copy, and depositing with the Director of the Philippine Library and Museum (two complete copies for works; or one copy of the periodical issue for contributions). No copyright is considered to exist until compliance with registration and deposit requirements.
By depositing one complete copy (or a photographic print/photograph or identifying reproduction acceptable to the Director) with a claim of copyright; once the work is reproduced in copies, Section 11 requirements apply.
No immoral or unchaste work shall be copyrighted. If discovered after copyright is granted (in the opinion of the Attorney-General), the copyright becomes null and void and the proprietor may be subject to criminal prosecution; deposited copies and related instruments may be destroyed if ordered by the Department Head.
Copyright endures for thirty years from the date it is registered. Renewal for another thirty years is allowed if filed within one year prior to expiration. If renewal is not filed, it expires at the end of thirty years. For works in series/volumes/component parts registered at intervals, duration is forty years from registration of the first part, with renewal for the same period.
Infringement may lead to (a) an injunction, (b) damages suffered plus infringer’s profits, with proof rules (plaintiff proves sales; defendant proves cost elements), or in lieu of actual damages/profits, the court may award just damages not exceeding ₱10,000 and not less than ₱200 (not treated as a penalty), and (c) other equitable terms and conditions the court may deem wise.
Yes. Infringing (or aiding/abetting infringement) is punishable by imprisonment not exceeding one year or a fine between ₱200 and ₱2,000, or both. Nothing in the Act prevents performance of a work for strictly religious, charitable, or educational purposes and not for profit by educational/charitable/religious institutions or societies.
Section 21 penalizes inserting/impressing copyright notices on uncopyrighted works, removing/altering notices on copyrighted works, or issuing/selling or importing works bearing false Philippine copyright notices for works not copyrighted in the Islands. Section 22 prohibits importation of articles bearing non-existent Philippine copyright notices or piratical copies unless imported under specified exceptions (e.g., limited personal use, government authority use, limited copies for educational/charitable purposes, and library/personal baggage for non-sale), with unlawful use still constituting infringement.