There is a push for an amendment to the Copyright Act of 1993 to extend the duration of copyright from the lifetime of the author and a period of 50 years after death to between 70 and 100 years after the death of the author before works becomes public domain, according to Lilyclaire Bellamy, deputy director of The Jamaica Intellectual Property Office (JIPO).

Bellamy told Sunday Finance that more than 50 submissions petitioning for an extension have been received so far.

"In Jamaica, there are a number of artists and individuals lobbying for the duration of copyright to be extended. Presently in Jamaica, it is the life of the author plus 50 years, some people are saying that it should be changed to 70 some are saying it should be 100 years after the death of the author," said Bellamy. "What JIPO is doing is we are compiling all of the reports that have been submitted to us."

JIPO defines copyright as an intellectual property right consisting of a collection of different rights that a creator has in respect of his/her intellectual creation. According to JIPO, the copyright owner has an exclusive right to exploit his/her creative work and has the authority to prevent others from using the work without his/her permission.

Among the areas covered under copyright are literature, art, music, drama, architectural designs, maps, technical drawings, photographs, computer programmes, choreography and advertisements.

But According to Bellamy, countries like the United States (US), Hungary and Romania extended their duration of copyright to 70 years after the death of the author. The amendment of the US Copyright Act in 1998 was triggered by the Walt Disney Corporation's lobby to ensure that works such as the early Mickey Mouse cartoons would remain copyrighted until 2020.

"Internationally, there is a move towards lengthening the duration of copyright, under international treaty it is the life of the author plus 50 years. In some jurisdiction, the life has been extended to 70 years and 90," Bellamy explained.

Nevertheless, Bellamy the authors are not the only persons that will be affected from the amendment, she said the users of any information created by the authors will have to seek permission of the author or even get a licence.

"The creators would benefit, but the users would perhaps be at a disadvantage because things that are gone into the public domain which any body can use, like people in churches can use hymns that are in the public domain without a problem," she said. "But now [if the duration of copyright is extended] it would have to go through the whole process of contacting the persons who owns the copyright to get their permission to use it and in some instances you may need to get a licence because they might charge you to use it."

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