Copyright infringement in photography

(NADS) - Copyright infringement in photography is a fairly common problem in Vietnam. However, in recent years, as the information technology industry has developed explosively, this situation has become more and more common and public, causing negative consequences in society, especially in the Vietnamese photography community.

Currently, some individuals and organizations arbitrarily use other people's personal Facebook images without the author's permission, which is happening widely and increasingly openly. Most social networks today allow users to freely post articles or images, only a few social networking sites manage the information and images that users post. Taking advantage of this, some organizations and individuals have carelessly taken other people's images and information on social networks to serve their personal purposes. The widespread copyright infringement in photography has greatly affected the photography industry and has a negative impact on authors who create works.

The work about Thac Ba Lake by NSNA Nguyen Tuan Vu was pirated and used illegally by a printing shop in Yen Bai City, as reported by NA&DS Magazine in August 2023.

The rampant copyright infringement of photography as above can also come from the following causes:

- Insufficient understanding: Many people do not understand intellectual property rights and copyright in photography. They do not know that copyright belongs to the creator of the work and must have the consent of the author to use or copy the work. There are also some people who are not aware, intentionally copy and use other people's work to save time and money and think that it is normal.

- Complexity in legal regulations: Laws related to intellectual property rights and copyrights are still unclear in terms of subjects and sanctions are not really strong and effective. Many people do not understand and do not know how to comply with these legal regulations. In terms of administrative procedures, to properly use copyrights according to regulations is quite complicated and cumbersome, sometimes leading to misunderstanding of regulations or causing frustration for those who comply with the law.

According to our current law, photographic works are subject to protection under the Law on Intellectual Property and have been clearly regulated. Clause 1, Article 6 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 07/2022-QH15 stipulates: "Copyright arises from the moment a work is created and expressed in a certain material form, regardless of the content, quality, form, means, language, whether published or unpublished, registered or unregistered".

Thus, in principle, photography is one of the types of works protected by copyright and copyright arises from the moment the work is created without having to go through any legal procedures.

At the same time, the provisions of the law have opened up a lot of administrative procedures such as in Clause 1, Article 34 of Decree 22/2018/ND-CP on image copyright registration procedures, "Authors, copyright owners, owners of related rights directly or authorize other organizations or individuals to submit 01 set of documents for copyright and related rights registration to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism".

However, in reality, copyright infringement in Vietnam is very complicated. When copyright infringement occurs, if the author wants to sue the violating organizations or individuals in court, the author must first have proof of his ownership. This can only be achieved if the author files a copyright application with the Copyright Office, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Without this copyright, the author must have sufficient evidence to prove that he is the legal owner of the original work. It is often very difficult to prove ownership of original works, sometimes the boundary is very thin.

Obviously, copying and using other people's photographic works without the author's permission is an act of copyright infringement. However, copyright infringement in photography in Vietnam is still quite common and complicated, in which the most typical is the unauthorized use of other people's photographic works on the Internet, especially on photo sharing websites or social networks and the production and trading of counterfeit and fake photographic products or illegal copying of other people's photographic works. Although the situation is quite serious, there is no agency that can control it effectively and thoroughly. There is no mechanism to control the sale of counterfeit photographic products or the mechanism is not strong enough to ensure the rights of photographers who create valuable works. Besides, there are still many users who are not aware of photographic copyright and still carelessly use other people's works arbitrarily. In addition, current regulations in the law on photography copyright in Vietnam still have loopholes and are difficult to apply, making it difficult to protect the rights of genuine photographers.

Faced with the above-mentioned rampant copyright violations, it is time for the authorities to strongly adjust legal regulations to make photography more professional and fulfill international commitments of which Vietnam is a member.

- Regarding the law, it is necessary to adjust and supplement stronger regulations and legal norms on photography copyright to ensure clarity, transparency and ease of application.

- There should be support policies for photographers to promote the implementation of intellectual property rights and protect their interests.

- Strengthen propaganda and education to raise awareness of copyright and intellectual property rights for the public, especially in the photography industry. Pilot research to include copyright education content in teaching content at general schools.

- Authorities need to strengthen control and supervision of the production, distribution and use of photographic works to detect and handle copyright infringements. There should even be criminal provisions.

- Seriously implement international commitments on photographic copyright to ensure fairness and uniformity in management and protection of the rights of photographic authors.

- Promote consulting and assistance for photographers on issues related to copyright and intellectual property rights.

The current situation in Vietnam shows that copyright infringement in photography is a complex problem with many causes. To limit copyright infringement in photography in Vietnam, it is necessary to combine many different measures from education, legal regulations, control and supervision, to support for photographers to ensure fairness and consistency in management and protection of their rights. Specifically, it is necessary to raise awareness and consciousness of intellectual property rights and copyright in propaganda agencies, press, television, etc. as well as have synchronous legal policies and sanctions that are strong and clear enough to protect the rights of owners of works. Only then can Vietnamese photography approach the world photography in a professional direction.

Source: https://nhiepanhdoisong.vn/vi-pham-ban-quyen-trong-nhiep-anh-14583.html