The copyright protection automatically and fully effect on the law at the time the author has created a copyright work, the law doesn’t not require the author to register his/her copyright with any government agency. However, creating a copyright work without registration is sometimes complicated to prove the right. Therefore, the Development of Intelligence Property of Thailand provides a registration services system in case the creator wishes to do so. Good news, online is available. Department of Intellectual Property

Assignment

Copyright is assignable, the owner may assign his rights in whole or in part and may assign it for a limited duration or for the entire term of copyright protection. The assignment must be made in writing (Except by inheritance). If the duration is not specified in the assignment contract, the assignment shall be deemed to last for ten years.

Protections

Onwer

Only the owner of copyright has the exclusive rights of: Reproduction or Adaptation; Communication to public; Letting for hire; Giving benefits accruing from the copyright to other persons.  The authorization by the owner of copyright to a person to exercise the right does not restrict the owner of copyright from granting such authorization to another person, except that the restriction is specified in a written authorization.

Author

The creator and his/her inheritor (Not the owner or his/her inheritor) of a copyright is entitled to identify himself as the creator and to prohibit the assignee or any person from distorting, shortening, adapting or doing anything with the work to the extent that such act would cause damage to the reputation or dignity of the creator.

Term of protection

Twenty years from the authorship or the first publication.

Copyright in a work of applied art endures for twenty-five years from the authorship or the first publication.

Fifty years from the authorship or the first publication.

An audiovisual, a cinematographic, a sound recording or an audio and video broadcasting endure for fifty years from the authorship or fifty years from the first publication.

Copyright in a work which is created in the course of employment endures for fifty years from the authorship or the first publication.

In the case of the creator being a juristic person, copyright endures for fifty years from the authorship or the first publication.

For the life and fifty years after the death

For other copyright works which are not mentioned above endure for the life of the creator and fifty years after the death of the creator. By the 2022 amendment, photographic work will be listed in this category on coming august 23, 2022.

In the case of a work of the joint-creators, copyright endures for the life of the joint-creators and fifty years from the death of the last surviving joint-author.

If the creator or all joint-creators is or are dead prior to the publication of the work, copyright endures for fifty years as from the first publication of the work.

Further information, please make an enquiry to our copyright litigation team.