Order of the President of the People’s Republic of China
No. 62
Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on amending the copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, adopted at the 23rd session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China on November 11, 2020, is hereby promulgated and shall enter into force as of June 1, 2021.
Xi Jinping
President of People’s Republic of China
December 11, 2020
Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China
(Adopted at the Fifteenth session of the Standing Committee of the 7th National People’s Congress on September 7, 1990, and revised in accordance with the Decision on Amending the copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China adopted at the 24th session of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People’s Congress on October 27, 2001 for the first time; revised in accordance with the Decision on Amending the copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China adopted at the 13th session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China on February 26, 2010 for the second time; and revised in accordance with the Decision on Amending the copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China adopted at the 23rd session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China on November 11, 2020 for the third time.)
Contents:
Chapter Ⅰ General Provisions
Chapter Ⅱ Copyright
Section 1 Copyright Owners and Their Rights
Section 2 Ownership of Copyright
Section 3 Term of Protection for Rights
Section 4 Limitations on Rights
Chapter Ⅲ Copyright Licensing and Assignment Contacts
Chapter Ⅳ Copyright-related Rights
Section 1 Publication of Books, Newspapers and Periodicals
Section 2 Performance
Section 3 Sound Recording and Video Recording
Section 4 Broadcasting by Radio Stations or Television Stations
Chapter Ⅴ Protection of Copyright and Copyright-related Rights
Chapter Ⅵ Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1
This Law is enacted, in accordance with the Constitution, for the purposes of protecting the copyright of authors in their literary, artistic and scientific works and the copyright-related rights and interests, of encouraging the creation and dissemination of works which would contribute to the construction of socialist spiritual and material civilization, and of promoting the development and prosperity of the socialist culture and science.
Article 2
Works of Chinese natural persons, legal persons or unincorporated organizations, whether published or not, shall enjoy copyright in accordance with this Law.
Any work of a foreigner or stateless person which is eligible to enjoy copyright under an agreement concluded between the country to which the foreigner belongs or in which he has habitual residence and China, or under an internationa1 treaty to which both countries are parties, shall be protected in accordance with this Law.
Works of foreigners or stateless persons first published in the territory of the People’s Republic of China shall enjoy copyright in accordance with this Law.
Any work of a foreigner who belongs to a country which has not concluded an agreement with China, or which is not a party to an international treaty with China or a stateless person first published in an country which is a party to an international treaty with China, or in such a member state or nonmember state, shall be protected in accordance with this Law.
Article 3
For the purposes of this Law, the term “works” refers to intellectual achievements that is original in the fields of literature, art and science, and those can be expressed in a certain form, including:
(1) written works;
(2) oral works;
(3) musical, dramatic, quyi’, choreographic and acrobatic works;
(4) works of fine art and architecture;
(5) photographic works;
(6) audiovisual works;
(7) drawings of engineering designs, and product designs, maps, sketches and other graphic works and model works;
(8) computer software; and
(9) other intellectual achievements confirming to the characteristics of works.
Article 4
The exercise of rights by copyright owners and owners of copyright-related rights shall not violate the Constitution and laws, and shall not harm public interests. The state supervises and manages the publication and dissemination of works in accordance with the law.
Article 5
This Law shall not be applicable to:
(l) laws; regulations; resolutions, decisions and orders of State organs; other documents of a legislative, administrative or judicial nature; and their official translations;
(2) news of pure facts; and
(3) calendars, numerical tables and forms of general use, and formulas.
Article 6
Regulations for the protection of copyright in expressions of folklore shall be established separately by the State Council.
Article 7
National copyright authorities shall be responsible for the nationwide administration of copyright; local departments, in charge of copyright and above county level, shall be in charge of the administration of copyright in its administrative region.
Article 8
the copyright owners and owners of copyright-related rights may authorize an organization for collective administration of copyright to exercise the copyright or any copyright-related right. the copyright collective management organization established according to law is a non-profit legal person; after authorization, the copyright collective management organization may, claim the right for the copyright owners and owners of copyright-related rights in its own name, and participate, as an interested party, in litigation, arbitration and mediation activities relating to the copyright or copyright-related right.
According to the authorization, the copyright collective management organization collects loyalties from the users. The standards for the collection of loyalties shall be determined through consultation between the copyright collective management organization and the representatives of user; if no agreement can be reached through consultation, an application for a ruling may be filed with the national copyright authorities and, if the ruling is not accepted, a lawsuit may be brought in a people’s court; the party may also directly bring a suit in a people’s court.
Copyright collective management organization should regularly publish to the society an overall situation including the collection and remittance of loyalties, the withdrawal and use of the management fee, and undistributed part of the loyalties or the like, and shall set up a query system of right information for queries of the right holder and user. National copyright authorities shall, in accordance with regulations of laws, supervise and manage the copyright collective management organizations.
Provisions for the mode of establishment, rights and obligations, collection and distribution of the royalties, and supervision and administration of the organization for collective administration of copyright shall be separately established by the State Council.
Chapter II Copyright
Section 1 Copyright Owners and Their Right
Article 9
The term ‘copyright owners’ shall include:
(1) authors; and
(2) other natural persons, legal persons and unincorporated organizations enjoying copyright in accordance with this Law.
Article 10
The term ‘copyright’ shall include the following personality rights and property rights:
(l) the right of publication, that is, the right to decide whether to make a work available to the public;
(2) the right of authorship, that is, the right to claim authorship and to have the author’s name mentioned in connection with the work;
(3) the right of alteration, that is, the right to alter or authorize others to alter one’s work;
(4) the right of integrity, that is, the right to protect one’s work against distortion and mutilation;
(5) the right of reproduction, that is, the right to produce one or more copies of a work by printing, photocopying, lithographing, making a sound recording or video recording, duplicating a recording, or duplicating a photographic work or by any other means;
(6) the right of distribution, that is, the right to make available to the public the original or reproductions of a work though sale or other transfer of ownership;
(7) the right of rental, that is, the right to authorize, with payment, others to temporarily use audiovisual works, and the original or the reproduction of computer software, except any computer software that is not the main subject matter of rental;
(8) the right of exhibition, that is, the right to publicly display the original or reproduction of a work of fine art and photography;
(9) the right of performance, that is, the right to publicly perform a work and publicly broadcast the performance of a work by various means;
(10) the right of showing, that is, the right to show to the public a work, of fine art, photography, film, audiovisual works and so on through film projectors, over-head projectors or any other technical devices;
(11) the right of broadcast, that is, the right to publicly broadcast or communicate to the public a work by wired or wireless means, to communicate to the public a broadcast work by a loudspeaker or by any other analogous tool used to transmit symbols, sounds or pictures, except for the rights provided in (12) of this paragraph;
(12) the right of communication through information networks, that is, the right to provide to the public a work, by wired or wireless means in such a way that members of the public may access this work at a time and from a place individually chosen by them;
(13) the right of making audiovisual works, that is, the right to fixate a work on a carrier by way of film production or by virtue of an analogous method of film production;
(14) the right of adaptation, that is, the right to change a work to create a new work of originality;
(15) the right of translation, that is, the right to translate a work in one language into one in another language;
(16) the right of compilation, that is, the right to compile works or parts of works into a new work by reason of the selection or arrangement; and
(17) any other rights a copyright owner is entitled to enjoy.
A copyright owner may authorize another person to exercise the rights under (5) to (17) of the preceding paragraph, and receive remuneration pursuant to an agreement or this Law.
A copyright owner may assign, in part or in whole, the rights under (5) to (17) of the preceding paragraph, and receive remuneration pursuant to an agreement or this Law.
Section 2 Ownership of Copyright
Article 11
Except where otherwise provided in this Law, the copyright in a work shall belong to its author.
The author of a work is the natural person who has created the work.
Where a work is created under the auspices, according to the intention and under the responsibility of a legal person or of an incorporated organization, the legal person or incorporated organization shall be deemed to be the author.
Article 12
The natural person, legal person or incorporated organization who is signed on the work shall be the author, and the corresponding right shall exist on the work, except where there is proof to the contrary.
Authors and other copyright owners may register their works with the registration organs recognized by the state copyright administration.'
The provisions of the preceding two paragraphs shall apply to copyright-related rights by reference.
Article 13
Where a work is created by adaptation, translation, annotation or arrangement of a preexisting work, the copyright in the work thus created shall be enjoyed by the adapter, translator, annotator or arranger, provided that the exercise of such copyright shall not prejudice the copyright in the original work.
Article 14
Where a work is created jointly by two or more persons, the copyright shall be enjoyed jointly by the co-authors, and no person who has not participated in the creation shall become a co-author.
The copyright in a joint work shall be exercised by the co-authors through consensus; if consensus cannot be reached and there is no justifiable reason, neither party shall prevent the other party from exercising its rights other than the assignment, the licensing of exclusive use by other, and the pledge, provided that the proceeds shall be reasonably distributed to all the co-authors.
Where a joint work may be used separately, the authors may independently enjoy copyright in the parts created by them, provided that the exercise of such copyright shall not infringe the copyright in the joint work as a whole.
Article 15
A compilation work refers to a work in which a number of works, or fragments of works, or data or other materials which do not constitute a work are compiled, and the selection or arrangement of the contents of which reflects originality; the copyright in the compilation work shall be enjoyed by the compilers, provided that the exercise of such copyright shall not infringe the copyright in the original work.
Article 16
Where a work produced by adaptation, translation, annotation, arrangement and compilation of a preexisting work is used for publication, performance or production of a sound or video recording product, permission shall be obtained from, and remuneration shall be paid to, the copyright owner of the work and the copyright owner of the original work.
Article 17
The copyright of a cinematographic work or a TV drama in an audiovisual work shall be enjoyed by the producer, but the scriptwriter, director, cameraman, lyricist, composer, and other authors thereof shall enjoy the right of authorship in the work, and have the right to receive remuneration pursuant to the contract concluded with the producer.
The ownership of copyright in audiovisual works other than those mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be agreed upon by the parties; where there is no agreement or the agreement is not clear, it shall be enjoyed by the producer, but the author shall enjoy the right of authorship and the right to remuneration.
The authors of the screenplay, musical works and other works, which that are incorporated in audiovisual works and can be exploited separately, shall be entitled to exercise their copyright independently.
Article 18
A work created by a natural person in the fulfillment of tasks assigned to him by a legal person or an incorporated organization shall be deemed to be a work created in the course of employment. The copyright in such work shall be enjoyed by the author, subject to the provisions of the second paragraph of this Article, provided that the legal person or the unincorporated organization shall have a priority right to exploit the work within the scope of its professional activities. During the two years after the completion of the work, the author shall not, without the consent of the legal person or unincorporated organization, authorize a third party to exploit the work in the same way as the legal person or unincorporated organization does.
In any of the following cases, the author of a work created in the course of employment shall enjoy the right of authorship, while the legal person or other unincorporated organization shall enjoy the other rights included in the copyright and may reward the author:
(1) drawings of engineering designs, product designs, maps, sketches, computer software and other works created in the course of employment mainly with the material and technical resource of the legal person or unincorporated organization and under its responsibility;
(2) works created in the course of employment by the staff of a newspaper or periodical agency, a news agency, a radio or television station;
(3) works created in the course of employment where the copyright is, in accordance with regulations of laws, administrative regulations or contracts, enjoyed by the legal person or unincorporated organization.
Article 19
The ownership of the copyright in a commissioned work shall be agreed upon in a contract between the commissioning and the commissioned parties. In the absence of a contract or of an explicit agreement in the contract, the copyright in such a work shall belong to the commissioned party.
Article 20
The transfer of the ownership of the original works does not change the ownership of the copyright of the works, but the right to exhibit the original copy of fine art and photography works shall be enjoyed by the owner of the original works.
In case an author transfers the ownership of the original copy of an unpublished fine art or photography work to another person, the transferee’s exhibition of the original copy shall not constitute a violation of the author’s right of publication.
Article 21
Where the copyright in a work belongs to a natural person, the rights under (5) to (17) in paragraph 1 of Article 10 of this Law in respect of the work shall, after his death, during the term of protection provided for in this Law, be transferred in accordance with the provisions of Laws.
Where the copyright in a work belongs to a legal person or an unincorporated organization, the rights under (5) to (l7) in paragraph 1, Article 10 of this Law, shall, after the change or the termination of the status of the legal person or unincorporated organization, during the term of protection provided for in this Law, be enjoyed by the succeeding legal person or unincorporated organization which has taken over the former’s rights and obligations, or, in the absence of such successor legal person or unincorporated organization, by the State.
Section 3 Term of Protection for Rights
Article 22
The rights of authorship, alteration and integrity of an author shall be unlimited in time.
Article 23
The term of protection for the right of publication and the rights referred to in (5) to (l7) in paragraph 1, Article l0 of this Law in respect of a work of a legal person shall be the lifetime of the author and fifty years after his death, and expires on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the death of the author; in the case of a work of joint authorship, such term shall expire on 31 December of the fiftieth year after the death of the last surviving author.
For a work of a legal person or an unincorporated organization, or for a work where the copyright (except the right of authorship) belongs to a legal person or an unincorporated organization, the term of protection of the right of publication shall be fifty years, terminating on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the completion of the creation of the work; the term of protection of the rights provided for in (5) to (17) in paragraph 1, Article 10 of this Law shall be 50 years, terminating on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of a work; however, if a work has not been published within 50 years after the completion of its creation, this Law shall no longer protect it.
The term of protection of the right to publish an audiovisual work shall be fifty years, terminating on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the completion of the creation of the work; the term of protection of the rights provided for in (5) to (l7) in paragraph 1, Article l0 of this Law shall be 50 years, terminating on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the first publication of a work; however, if a work has not been published within 50 years after the completion of its creation, this Law shall no longer protect it.
Section 4 Limitations on Rights
Article 24
In the following cases, a work may be exploited without permission from, and without payment of remuneration to, the copyright owner, provided that the name or title of the author and the title of the work shall be mentioned, the normal use of the work shall not be affected, and the legal rights and interests of the copyright owner enjoyed by the copyright owner shall not be irrationally prejudiced:
(l) use of a published work for the purposes of the user’s own private study, research or self-entertainment;
(2) appropriate quotation from a published work in one’s own work for the purposes of introduction to, or comments on, a work, or demonstration of a point;
(3) reuse or citation, for any unavoidable reason, of a published work in newspapers, periodicals, at radio stations, television stations or any other media for the purpose of reporting news;
(4) reprinting by newspapers or periodicals, or rebroadcasting by radio stations, television stations, or any other media, of articles on current issues relating to politics, economics or religion published by other newspapers, periodicals, or broadcast by other radio stations, television stations or any other media except where the copyright owner has declared that the reprinting and rebroadcasting is not permitted;
(5) publication in newspapers or periodicals, or broadcasting by radio stations, television stations or any other media, of a speech delivered at a public gathering, except where the author has declared that the publication or broadcasting is not permitted;
(6) translation, alternation, compilation, broadcasting, or reproduction in a small quantity of copies, of a published work for use by teachers or scientific researchers, in classroom teaching or scientific research, provided that the translation or reproduction shall not be published or distributed;
(7) use of a published work, within proper scope, by a State organ for the purpose of fulfilling its official duties;
(8) reproduction of a work in its collections by a library, archive, memorial hall, museum, art gallery, culture center or any similar institution, for the purposes of the display, or preservation of a copy, of the work;
(9) free-of-charge live performance of a published work, where said performance neither collects any fees from the members of the public nor pays remuneration to the performers, and is not for profit;
(10) copying, drawing, photographing or video recording of an artistic work located or on display in a public place;
(11) translation of a published work of a Chinese citizen, legal person or any unincorporated organization from the nationally universal language into any minority nationality language for publication and distribution within the country; and
(12) providing published works in an accessible manner perceivable for dyslexic people; and
(13) other circumstances prescribed by laws and administrative regulations.
The above limitations on rights in the preceding paragraph shall be applicable to copyright-related rights.
Article 25
In compiling and publishing textbooks for implementing the compulsory education and the national educational program, parts of published works, short written works, music works, or single copies of works of painting, photographic or graphic works may be compiled into textbooks without the authorization from the authors, with remuneration paid to the copyright owner according to the regulations, the name or title of the author, and the title of the work indicated and without prejudice to other rights enjoyed by the copyright owners according to this Law.
The above limitations in the preceding paragraph on rights shall be applicable also to the copyright-related rights.
Chapter III Copyright Licensing and Assignment Contracts
Article 26
Subject to provisions in this Law, according to which no permission is needed, anyone who exploits a work created by others shall conclude a contract with, or otherwise obtain permission from, the copyright owner.
A licensing contract shall include the following basic clauses:
(l) the category of right licensed for exploitation of the work covered by the license;
(2) the exclusive or non-exclusive nature of the right to exploit the work covered by the license;
(3) the geographic area and term of the license;
(4) the standard of remuneration and the method of payment;
(5) the liability in case of breach of the contract; and
(6) any other matter that the contracting parties consider necessary.
Article 27
Assignment of a right referred to in (5) to (l7) in paragraph 1, Article l0 of this Law shall require conclusion of a contract in writing.
A contract of assignment shall include the following basic clauses:
(1) title of the work;
(2) category and geographic area of the assigned right;
(3) assignment price;
(4) date and manner of payment of the assignment price;
(5) liabilities for breach of the contract; and
(6) any other matters that the contracting parties consider necessary.
Article 28
Where the property rights in copyright is pledged as collateral, the pledger and the pledgee shall register the pledge in accordance with regulations of laws.
Article 29
The other party shall not, without permission from the copyright owner, exercise any right that the copyright owner has not expressly licensed or assigned in the licensing and assignment contract.
Article 30
The standard of remuneration for the exploitation of a work may be fixed by the interested parties or may be paid according to the standard established by the national copyright authority in collaboration with other departments concerned. Where the interested parties have not expressly fixed it, remuneration may also be paid in accordance with the standard established by the national copyright authority in collaboration with other departments concerned.
Article 31
Publishers, performers, producers of sound recordings and video recordings, radio stations, television stations and other entities who or which have obtained, pursuant to the relevant provisions of this Law, the right to exploit the copyright of others, shall not prejudice the authors' rights of authorship, alteration or integrity, or their right to remuneration.
Chapter IV Copyright-related Rights
Section 1 Publication of Books, Newspapers and Periodicals
Article 32
A book publisher who publishes a book shall conclude a publishing contract with, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
Article 33
A book publisher shall have the exclusive right to publish the work delivered to him by the copyright owner for publication. The exclusive right to publish a work enjoyed by the book publisher specified in the contract shall be protected by law, and the work may not be published by others.
Article 34
The copyright owner shall deliver the work within the term specified in the contract. The book publisher shall publish the work in accordance with the quality requirements and within the term specified in the contract.
The book publisher shall bear the civil liability specified in Article 54 of this Law if he fails to publish the work within the term specified in the contract.
The book publisher shall notify, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner when the work is to be reprinted or republished. If the publisher refuses to reprint or republish the work when stocks of the book are exhausted, the copyright owner shall have the right to terminate the contrast.
Article 35
Where a copyright owner has submitted the manuscript of his work to a newspaper or a periodical publisher for publication and has not received, within 15 days from the newspaper publisher or within 30 days from the periodical publisher, counted from the date of submission of the manuscript, any notification of the said publisher’s decision to publish the work, the copyright owner may submit the manuscript of the same work to another newspaper or periodical publisher for publication, unless the two parties have agreed otherwise.
Except where the copyright owner has declared that reprinting or excerpting is not permitted, other newspaper or periodical publishers may, after the publication of the work by a newspaper or periodical, reprint the work or print an abstract of it or print it as reference material, but such other publishers shall pay remuneration to the copyright owner as prescribed in regulations.
Article 36
A book publisher may alter or abridge a work with the permission of the copyright owner.
A newspaper or periodical publisher may make editorial modifications and abridgments in a work, but shall not make modifications in the contents of the work unless permission has been obtained from the author.
Article 37
A publisher has the right to license or prohibit any other person to use the typographical arrangement of books or periodicals he has published.
The term of protection for the right provided for in the preceding paragraph shall be ten years, and expires on 3l December of the tenth year after the first publication of the books or periodicals using the typographical arrangement.
Section 2 Performance
Article 38
A performer who for a performance exploits a work created by another person shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner. Where a performing organizer organizes a performance, the Organizer shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
Article 39
A performer shall, in relation to his performance, enjoy the right
(l) to claim performer ship;
(2) to protect the image inherent in his performance from distortion;
(3) to authorize others to make live broadcasts and public transmission of its or his performance and to receive remuneration;
(4) to authorize others to make sound recordings and video recordings, and to receive remuneration therefore.
(5) to authorize others to reproduce, distribute or rent sound recordings and video recordings incorporating his performance, and to receive remuneration therefore; and
(6) to authorize others to communicate his performance to the public on information network, and to receive remuneration therefore.
The person so authorized who exploits the work in the way referred to in the preceding paragraphs (3) to (6) shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
Article 40
The performance performed by an actor to complete the performance task of the performance entity is a duty performance, where an actor shall have the right to reveal his identity and to protect his performing image from distortion, and the ownership of other rights shall be prescribed by the parties concerned. Where the parties have not agreed or the agreement is not clear, the rights of the duty performance shall be enjoyed by the performance entity.
Where the rights of the duty performance is enjoyed by the actors, the performance entity may, within the scope of their business, use the performance free of charge
Article 41
The term of protection for the rights provided for in Article 37, paragraphs (1) and (2), of this Law shall not be subject to any limitation.
The term of protection for the rights provided for in Article 37, paragraphs (3) to (6), of this Law shall be fifty years, and expires on 31 December of the fiftieth year after the performance was made.
Section 3 Sound Recordings and Video Recordings
Article 42
A producer of sound recordings or video recordings who, for the production of a sound recording or video recording, exploits a work created by another person, shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
A producer of sound recordings or video recordings who exploits a work created by adaptation, translation, annotation or arrangement of a preexisting work shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner of the work created by adaptation, translation, annotation or arrangement and the copyright owner of the original work.
A producer of sound recordings who exploits a music work of another person has duly made into a sound recording to produce sound recordings, may not obtain permission from, but shall pay remuneration to the copyright owner as prescribed by regulat1ons, such work shall not be exploited where the copyright owner has declared that such exploitation is not permitted.
Article 43
When producing a sound recording or video recording, the producer shall conclude a contract with, and pay remuneration to, the performers.
Article 44
A producer of sound recordings or video recordings shall have the right to authorize others to reproduce, distribute, rent and communicate to the public on an information network such sound recordings or video recordings and the right to obtain remuneration therefore. The term of protection of such rights shall be fifty years, and expires on December 3l of the fiftieth year after the recording was first produced.
Any one who is authorized to reproduce, distribute and communicate to the public on an information network a sound recording or video recording shall obtain permission simultaneously from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner and the performer as presented by regulations.
Article 45
If a sound recording is used for wired or wireless public transmission, or is broadcast to the public through technical equipment for transmitting sound, remuneration shall be paid to the producer of sound recording.
Section 4 Broadcasting by Radio Stations or Television Stations
Article 46
A radio station or television station that broadcasts an unpublished work created by another person, shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
A radio station or television station that broadcasts a published work created by another person does not need permission from, but shall pay remuneration in accordance with provisions to, the copyright owner.
Article 47
A radio station or television station shall have the right to prohibit the following acts without authorization therefrom:
(1) to rebroadcast its broadcast radio or television program by wired or wireless means;
(2) to record and copy its broadcast radio or television program; and
(3) to broadcast its broadcast radio or television program to the public through information internet.
The exercise of the rights prescribed in the preceding paragraph by a radio station or television station shall not affect, restrict or infringe the exercise of copyright or copyright-related rights by others.
The term of protection for the right referred to in the first paragraph shall be fifty years, and expires on December 31 of the fiftieth year after the radio or television program was first broadcast.
Article 48
A television station that broadcasts an audiovisual work or a video product produced by another person shall obtain permission from, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner of the audiovisual work or the producer of the video; the station that broadcasts a video product produced by another person shall obtain permission of, and pay remuneration to, the copyright owner.
Chapter V Protection of copyright and copyright-related rights
Article 49
In order to protect copyright and copyright-related rights, the right holder may take technical measures.
Without the right holder’s permission, no organization or individual is allowed to intentionally circumvent or destroy the technical measures, no device or component shall be manufactured, imported or made available to the public for the purpose of circumventing or damaging the technical measures, and no technical service shall be intentionally provided for others to circumvent or destroy technical measures, except for the circumstances that can be avoided in accordance with regulations of laws and administrative regulations.
The term “technical measures” as mentioned in this Law refers to the effective technologies, devices or components used to prevent and restrict browsing and appreciating, or providing to the public through information networks, works, performances, and sound recording or video recording without the permission of the right holder.
Article 50
Under the following circumstances, the technical measures may be avoided, but the technologies, devices or components for circumventing the technical measures shall not be made available to others, and other rights enjoyed by the right holder according to law shall not be infringed:
(1) to provide a small number of published works for classroom teaching or scientific researches in schools, which cannot be obtained by normal means, for use by teachers or researchers;
(2) to provide published works, which cannot be obtained by normal means, to a dyslexic person in an accessible manner perceivable thereby for non-profit purposes;
(3) to perform official duties in accordance with administrative, supervision and judicial procedures by state organs;
(4) to test the security performance of the computer and its system or network; and
(5) to conduct encryption research or reverse engineering research of computer software.
The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall apply to restrictions on copyright-related rights.
Article 51
Without permission of the right holder, none of the following acts shall be committed:
(1) intentionally deleting or changing rights management information of a work, a layout design, a performance, a video/audio product, or that on broadcast and television, except for technical reasons that cannot be avoided; and
(2) providing to the public even when the rights management information of a work, a layout design, a performance, a sound recording or video recording, or that on broadcast and television is known or is supposed to be known.
Article 52
Anyone who commits any of the following acts of infringement shall bear civil liability for such remedies as ceasing the infringing act, eliminating the effects of the act, making an apology or paying compensation for damages, depending on the circumstances:
(1) publishing a work without the permission of the copyright owner;
(2) publishing a work of joint authorship as a work created solely by oneself, without the permission of the other co-authors;
(3) having one's name mentioned in connection with a work created by another, in order to seek personal fame and gain, where one has not taken part in the creation of the work;
(4) distorting or mutilating a work created by another;
(5) plagiarizing a work of another person;
(6) exploiting by exhibition and producing of audiovisual products, or by adaptation, translation, annotation, or by other means, without the permission of the copyright owner, unless otherwise provided in this Law;
(7) exploiting a work created by another person without paying remuneration as prescribed by regulations;
(8) rending the original or a copy of a work, sound recording or video recording, without the permission of the copyright owner of an audiovisual work, computer software, sound recording or video recording, unless otherwise provided in this Law;
(9) exploiting the typographic arrangement of a book or periodical without the permission of the publisher;
(10) broadcasting live a performance or communicating the live performance to the public, or recording his performance without the permission of the performer; or
(11) committing any other act of infringement of copyright and of other copyright-related rights.
Article 53
Anyone who commits any of the following acts of infringement shall bear civil liability as provided for in Article 52 of this Law in light of the circumstances; where an infringing act impacts the interests of the public at the same time, the department in charge of copyright shall order the cessation of the infringing act, give a warning thereto, confiscate illegal income, confiscate, and harmlessly destroy and handle the infringing copy, and the materials, tools, equipment and so on mainly used for producing the infringing products, and concurrently impose a fine of not less than one time but not more than five times the amount of illegal business transactions where the amount of illegal business transactions exceeds 50,000 yuan; where there is no illegal business transaction, it is hard to calculate the illegal business transaction or the illegal business transaction is no more than 50,000 yuan, a fine of less than 50,000 can be imposed; and if the act constitutes a crime, the infringer shall be prosecuted for criminal liability:
(1) reproducing, distributing, performing, showing, broadcasting, compiling or communicating to the public on an information network a work created by another person, without the permission of the copyright owner, unless otherwise provided in this Law;
(2) publishing a book where the exclusive right of publication belongs to another person;
(3) reproducing and distributing a sound recording or video recording of a performance, or communicating to the public his performance on an information network without the permission of the performer, unless otherwise provided in the Law;
(4) reproducing and distributing or communicating to the public on an information network a sound recording or video recording produced by another person, without the permission of the producer, unless otherwise provided in the Law;
(5) broadcasting, reproducing, or broadcasting to the public through information network, a radio or television program without the permission, unless otherwise provided in this Law;
(6) intentionally circumventing or destroying the technological measures taken by a copyright owner and the owner of a copyright-related right, manufacturing, importing, or making available to the public, devices or components for the purpose of circumventing or damaging the technical measures, or intentionally providing technical service for others to circumvent or destroy technical measures, unless otherwise provided in law or in administrative regulations;
(7) intentionally deleting or changing rights management information of a work, a layout design, a performance, a video/audio product, or that on broadcast and television, except for technical reasons that cannot be avoided, and providing to the public even when the rights management information of a work, a layout design, a performance, a sound recording or video recording, or that on broadcast and television is known or is supposed to be known, unless otherwise provided in law or in administrative regulations; or
(8) producing or selling a work where the signature of another is counterfeited.
Article 54
Where a copyright or a copyright-re1ated right is infringed, the infringer shall compensate for the actually injury suffered thereby by the right holder, or on the basis of the unlawful income of the infringer; where the right holder’s actual injury or infringer’s unlawful income cannot be determined, compensation may be made with reference to the royalty. In case that the circumstances of intentional infringement of copyright or copyright-related rights are serious, compensation may be paid from one time to five times the amount determined by the above method.
Where it is difficult to calculate the actual loss of the right holder, the illegal income of the infringer, or the loyalty of the right, the people’s court shall, on the basis of the circumstances of the infringing act, make a judgment of not less than five hundred yuan but not more than five million yuan as compensation.
The amount of compensation shall also include reasonable expenses paid by the right holder to stop the infringing actions.
The people's court may, in order to determine the amount of compensation, order the infringer to provide such books and materials as are related to the infringement act after the right holder has performed the necessary burden of proof and such books and materials are mainly in the possession of the infringer; if the infringer fails to provide, or provides false account books and materials, etc., the people's court may determine the amount of compensation by referring to the claims of the right holder and the evidence provided.
In handling a copyright dispute case, the people's court, at the request of the right holder, shall, except under special circumstances, order to destroy the infringing copies; and shall order to destroy materials, tools and equipment mainly used for manufacturing infringing copies without compensation; or, under special circumstances, shall order to prohibit such materials, tools and equipment from entering commercial channels without compensation.
Article 55
When investigating and punishing an act suspected of infringing on copyright and copyright-related rights, the copyright department in charge may inquire the parties concerned and investigate the circumstances relating to the suspected illegal act; may carry out on-site inspection of places and articles where the parties are suspected of illegal acts; may consult and duplicate the contract, invoices, account books and other relevant materials related to suspected illegal acts; and may seal up or seize places and articles suspected of committing illegal acts.
The parties concerned shall provide assistance and cooperation in the exercise of the functions and powers prescribed in the preceding paragraph by the copyright department in charge, and shall not refuse to obstruct the exercise
Article 56
A copyright owner or owner of a copyright-related right who has evidence to prove that another person is committing or will commit an act of infringing his right or impeding realization of its right, which could cause irreparable injury to his legitimate rights and interests if the act is not stopped immediately, may apply to the People's Court for ordering the adoption of property preservation order for a certain act or prohibition against a certain act in accordance with regulations of laws before initiating legal proceedings.
The provisions of Article 93 to 96 and 99 of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China shall apply when the People's Court handles the application referred to in the preceding paragraph.
Article 57
For the purpose of preventing an infringing act and under the circumstance where the evidence could be lost or is difficult to obtain at1erwards, the copyright owner or the owner of a copyright-related right may apply to the People's Court for evidence preservation in accordance with regulations of laws before initiating legal proceedings.
Article 58
The People's Court hearing a case may confiscate the unlawful income, infringing reproductions and materials used for committing the illegal act of infringement of copyright or copyright-related rights.
Article 59
The publisher or producer of a reproduction who cannot prove that his publication or production has been authorized, the distributor of a reproduction or the renter of the reproduction of an audiovisual work, computer software, sound recording or video recording who cannot prove that his distributed or rented reproduction has been from a lawful source, shall bear legal liability.
In the proceedings, if the accused infringer claims that he is not liable for the infringement, he shall provide evidence for proving the obtaining of permission from the right holder, or that he is in a situation provided for in this Law that he may use the infringing material without permission from the right holder.
Article 60
A dispute over copyright may be settle by mediation. lt may also be submitted for arbitration to a copyright arbitration body under a written arbitration agreement concluded between the parties or under the arbitration clause in the contract.
Any party may institute proceedings directly in the People's Court in the absence of a written arbitration agreement or in the absence of an arbitration clause in the contract.
Article 61
The provisions of the relevant laws shall apply if a party bears civil liability for failing to perform his contractual obligations or performing his contractual obligations in a non-conforming manner, or if a party exercises his litigation rights or applies for preservation.
Chapter Vl Supplementary Provisions
Article 62
For the purposes of this Law, the terms 'zhuzuoquan'2 is 'banquan'2.
Article 63
'publication' referred to in Article 2 of this Law means the reproduction and distribution of a work.
Article 64
Regulations for the protection of computer software and the right of communication of information on network shall be established separately by the State Council.
Article 65
For a photographic work, of which the right of publication, and the term of protection of the rights provided for in (5) to (17) of Paragraph 1, Article 10 of this Law expire before June 1, 2021, but still remains within the term of protection in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 1, Article 23 of this Law, it will no longer protected.
Article 66
The rights of copyright owners, publishers, performers, producers of sound recordings and video recordings, radio stations and television' stations as provided for in this Law, of which the term of protection specified in this Law has not yet expired on the date of this Law's entry into force, shall be protected in accordance with this Law.
Any infringements of copyright and the copyright-related rights or breaches of contract committed prior to the entry into force of this Law shall be dealt with under the relevant regulations in force at the time when the act was committed.
Article 67
This Law shall enter into force on June 1, 2021.
