First, is it an infringement to sing other people's songs live on the Internet?
Covering other people's songs, if the cover program is performed for the general benefit, no fees are charged to the public, and no remuneration is paid to the performers, without the permission of the copyright owner. However, unauthorized use of other people's songs for commercial purposes to participate in commercial competitions and live TV broadcasts involves infringement, including singing in bars and spreading singers' cover videos on the Internet. According to the copyright law, works include written works, music, drama, folk art, dance, acrobatics and other works.
Copyright includes the following personal rights and property rights: right of publication, right of authorship, right of modification, right of protecting the integrity of works, right of reproduction, right of distribution, right of lease, right of exhibition, right of performance, right of projection, right of broadcasting, right of information network dissemination, right of filming, right of adaptation, right of translation, right of assembly and other rights that copyright owners should enjoy. Article 37 of China's Copyright Law stipulates that performers, including actors and performing units, should obtain permission from the copyright owner and pay remuneration for using other people's works to perform. Where a performance organizer organizes a performance, it shall obtain the permission of the copyright owner and pay remuneration.
Legal basis: Article 37 of the Copyright Law of People's Republic of China (PRC). A performer (actor or performance unit) who uses other people's works to perform shall obtain permission from the copyright owner and pay remuneration. Where a performance organizer organizes a performance, it shall obtain the permission of the copyright owner and pay remuneration. To perform a performance by adapting, translating, annotating or collating a work from an existing work, the permission of the copyright owner of the adaptation, translation, annotation or collating work and the copyright owner of the original work shall be obtained, and remuneration shall be paid.
Second, acts of copyright infringement must meet the following three conditions.
1, the fact of infringement is that the actor uses the copyright owner's works, performances, audio-visual products and radio and television programs without the permission of the copyright owner and in accordance with the conditions of use stipulated in the copyright law. Copyright infringement, without the consent of the author and other copyright owners, is not a case of fair use and legal use, but an unauthorized use of the work, so it is a violation of copyright law. This kind of infringement may damage the personal rights and property rights of other people's works at the same time. For example, illegally copying other people's works may only infringe on the property rights of other people's works, while counterfeiting other people's works often infringes on the personal rights and property rights of other people's works at the same time.
2. The behavior is illegal. Copyright is an absolute right, and everyone has the obligation of inaction that cannot infringe this right. Others must abide by the relevant provisions of the copyright law and other laws when using copyrighted works. If the actor violates the law, his behavior is illegal. As for works that are not protected by China's copyright law, works that fail to obtain copyright, or "works" that have entered the public domain, there is no infringement problem when others use them.
3. The actor is subjectively at fault. The so-called fault refers to the mental state of the infringer's infringement and its consequences, including intentional and negligent forms. Most acts of copyright infringement are intentional; There are also a few that can be constituted by intention or negligence. Distinguishing the forms of fault is of certain significance for determining the legal responsibility of the infringer. Generally speaking, the legal liability of intentional infringement is heavier than that of negligent infringement.
Third, what is the performer's right?
There are two main problems in defining the subject of performers' rights, namely, performers.
1, category definition. Broadly speaking, performers include not only those who perform literary and artistic works with copyright, but also those who perform literary and artistic works in the public domain and those who perform non-works. In a narrow sense, performers only include those who perform literary and artistic works, but not those who perform non-literary and artistic works, such as jugglers, acrobats and sports athletes.
2. Theme type. The performers in the sense of neighboring rights must be natural persons, but whether they can be companies, enterprises or other legal persons is debatable. Like most countries in the world, China's Copyright Law restricts performances to public copying of works, while non-copying of works is mainly protected by the right of copying people's portraits in contract law or civil law.
The above is the legal knowledge about whether singing other people's songs online is infringing. Online celebrity live broadcast plays songs that have been released by singers in the live broadcast room. Since the audience can give the online celebrity anchor a gift with economic benefits, the anchor needs to give the singer some money, otherwise it may constitute infringement. If you have any other questions, please feel free to consult the French Open and the lawyer will answer them for you.
Legal objectivity:
Article 53 of the Copyright Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) has one of the following infringements, and shall bear the civil liability stipulated in Article 52 of this Law according to the circumstances; If the infringement damages the public interest at the same time, the copyright authority shall order it to stop the infringement, give it a warning, confiscate the illegal income, confiscate and harmlessly destroy the infringing copy and the materials, tools and equipment mainly used to make the infringing copy. If the illegal business amount is more than 50,000 yuan, a fine of more than one time and less than five times the illegal business amount may be imposed; If there is no illegal business amount, the illegal business amount is difficult to calculate or less than 50 thousand yuan, a fine of less than 250 thousand yuan may be imposed; (1) Reproduction, distribution, performance, projection, broadcasting, compilation and dissemination to the public through information networks without the permission of the copyright owner, except as otherwise provided by this Law; (2) publishing books with exclusive publishing rights enjoyed by others.