Material protected by copyright

Books are a type of literary work.
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Basically anything reduced to writing which is not trivial in content is a literary work. This includes:

• Books, both fictional texts such as novels and novellas and nonfiction texts such as historical nonfiction, biographies, autobiographies and memoir, textbooks, technical manuals and instructional guides.
• Articles published in newspapers, magazines, journals, etc
• Anthologies, compilations and collections of written works including newspapers, reviews, magazine, journals and similar periodical, as well as encyclopaedias, dictionaries, year books or similar works and works written in distinct parts by different authors or incorporating works or parts of works of different authors are incorporated
• Essays, dissertations, theses and other academic papers
• Grey literature and other content not subject to peer review published by universities, research organisations, governments, businesses and nonprofits such as the findings of research, conference proceedings, technical standards, interview transcripts, etc
• Poetry, limericks, haiku, sonnet, ballard, villanelle, odes, elegies, free verse, etc, as well as song lyrics (separate to the musical work)
• Artefacts of playwriting such as stage play/theatrical scripts (for theatre) and libretto (for extended musical theatre works such as for opera, operetta or musicals), whether playtexts or scenarios
• Artefacts of screenwriting such as screenplays/film scripts (for films) and teleplays (for television), synopses, scriptments, etc
• Letters, diaries, journals, notes, etc
• Operational documents published by universities, research organisations, governments, businesses and nonprofits such as business plans, strategic plans, annual plans, newsletters, memos, briefings, policy and procedure documents, technical standards, user guides, compliance and regulatory documents and other documents
• Text published on websites, including blog posts, Facebook status updates, tweets on Twitter, etc
• Text on flyers, brochures, pamphlets, catalogues, advertising materials and other ephemera
• Computer programs, i.e., a set of statements or instructions used directly or indirectly in a computer to achieve a certain result
• Tables and compilations of information expressed in words, figures or symbols such as a database, catalogue or directory.

So long as they are ‘original’ other written content such as emails, SMS text messages and instant chat messages may also be literary works.

Importantly, literary works also includes manuscripts, the handwritten or typed text by the author before the material has been published.

Performing arts are protected as dramatic works.
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Dramatic works are any work that is intended to be performed theatrically. Dramatic works may be:

• Dance, choreography and movement, though it must be in a material form such as expressing it in choreographic notation or recorded in a video
• Theatrical productions such as stage plays, soliloquies, puppetry, pantomimes, mime, dumb shows, etc (separate to their scripts, which are literary works)
• Film treatments and scenarios for a film (separate to the film).

Music is also one of the types of Works protected by copyright.
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The Copyright Act does not define ‘musical work’. However it is taken to encompass the melody of the song. As such, a musical work may include:

• Musical scores for performance by musicians, bands, orchestras, ensembles and other musical acts
• Musical scores that are part of a concert, opera, etc
• Songs, jingles, ditties, lullabies, hymns, etc
• Instrumental music.

Of course, copyright only protects music and lyrics if they are in a material form such as writing down lyrics or expressing music as choreographic notation, or recording both in a sound recording.

Where a song also includes written lyrics they are typically considered a literary work and are protected separately to the musical work. If the music has been recorded then the sound recording of the performance of the song exists and will be protected separately.

Artistic works are the last type of work protected by copyright.
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The Copyright Act provides a list of things that are considered artistic works, including:

• Paintings
• Sculptures, including a cast or model made for purposes of sculpture
• Drawings, which includes diagrams, maps, charts or plans
• Engravings, which includes etchings, lithographs, products of photogravure, woodcuts, prints and similar works (that are not photographs)
• Photographs and products of processes similar to photography, including products of xerography
• Buildings and models of buildings, where ‘building’ includes a structure of any kind
• Works of artistic craftsmanship, including the works of craftspeople working in many media such as silversmiths, potters, woodworkers, hand-embroiderers and many others. This likely takes in handmade jewellery, handmade ceramics, woodwork and embroidery. Importantly, works of artistic craftsmanship are not confined to handicraft only.

Sound recordings are protected by copyright.
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A sound recording is the aggregate of the sounds embodied in a record. That means sounds stored on recording media such as cassette tapes, CDs or computer hard drives are sound recordings and attract copyright protection. 

Sound recordings may include:

• Recordings of music and songs
• Recordings of a live performance, such as dance or theatre, reading a literary work aloud or an expression of folklore
• Recordings of lectures, seminars, workshops and other presentations as well as interviews, conversations and oral histories
• Podcasts and audio on websites
• Instructional sound recordings
• Soundscapes and field recordings of natural or urban environments

A sound recording is protected separately to any underlying works they include, such as the song or composition. They are protected regardless of the format in which they were recorded, exported as or later converted into.

Analogue and digital films are protected by copyright.
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A film is the aggregate of visual images embodied in an article or thing capable of being shown as a moving picture, including the aggregate of the sounds embodied in a soundtrack associated with the visual images. That means visual images and sounds that together comprise a film are protected by copyright.

Films may include:

• Feature films
• Documentaries and factual content
• A film of a television program (separate to the broadcast)
• Animation and moving image cartoons
• Short films, video clips, mobile phone footage, etc
• Video and moving image advertising, including ads on free-to-air television, video ads online, promotional trailers of films, television programs and video games, etc
• Vodcasts and videos on websites such as web series and YouTube videos
• Educational, training and instructional videos
• Video games, including gameplay footage.

Some material capable of being shown as a moving picture, such as multimedia, may also be a film.

Films are protected separately to any underlying works like the script or any other works included in it such as photographs and clips of other films. They are protected regardless of the format in which they were recorded, exported as or later converted into.

Copyright covers broadcasts as well.
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A ‘broadcast’ is a communication to the public delivered by a broadcasting service within the meaning of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth). Broadcasting service means ‘a service that delivers television programs or radio programs to persons having equipment appropriate for receiving that service, whether the delivery uses the radiofrequency spectrum, cable, optical fibre, satellite or any other means or a combination of those means’. This includes free-to-air broadcasts and subscription broadcasts delivered by:

• A national broadcasting service i.e., television and radio broadcasts by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and the Special Broadcasting Corporation (SBS)
• A commercial broadcasting service i.e., television broadcasts by Seven Network, Nine Network, Network Ten and their affiliates, radio broadcasts by commercial radio services such as and pay TV operators such as Foxtel
• A community broadcasting service i.e., community radio broadcasters and community television broadcasters
• A broadcasting service that just transmits program material supplied by National Indigenous TV Limited.

Currently material made available by on-demand online video streaming services such as Netflix, Stan and Disney+ and others are not within the scope of ‘broadcast’. This is because a series of ministerial determinations (the most recent of which was dated 13 September 2022) have specifically excluded services that makes available television programs or radio programs using the internet (unless the service is also a broadcasting service under the Broadcasting Services Act).

The layout of a published work is protected by copyright.
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The Copyright Act also extends protection to published editions of one or more literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works. A published edition relates to the arrangement that makes up the layout and formatting of published material.

A book is probably the most obvious example of a published edition. The typographic arrangement such as font selection, sizing, weight, leading and tracking, the number and configuration of columns, the size of the margins and gutters, the size, weight and spacing around headings, the placement of visual elements such as photographs, illustrations and diagrams, as well as typesetting, page layout, pagination, cover design and other elements that make up the look and feel of that published version of the book make up the published edition. Importantly, it is the combination of the typographical elements of the book that make up the published edition, not these elements individually. The same story may be published in another edition by another publisher with their own design and layout (attracting its own right to that published edition).

The right to protect published editions from reuse exists separately from rights attached to to the work or works included in the edition.