Based on the characteristics of dictionaries and dictionaries, dictionaries and dictionary works are mostly adjusted, edited and enriched on the basis of inheriting the previous dictionaries. In the process of creation, editors may re-create some entries or some meanings under entries on the premise of using a large number of predecessors' entries, and may also translate some entries in the original. Therefore, there is controversy about what kind of works a dictionary constitutes.
For details, please refer to the explanation of1June, 1999 10 by the Copyright Administration Department of the National Copyright Administration [1999] No.37.
Provincial Copyright Bureau Copyright Bureau:
We have received the Request for Instructions on Copyright of Dictionaries, and we hereby reply as follows:
According to the information provided in the letter, the "standard nouns" of 30 books, such as "X X Nouns" published by the National Committee for the Examination and Approval of Scientific and Technical Terminology and published by X X Publishing House, are Chinese names of scientific concepts with corresponding English names, and their arrangement methods are as follows: The texts are listed by subject; Chinese-English indexes are arranged according to all Chinese pinyin and four tones; The English-Chinese indexes are arranged in common English alphabetical order. As to whether the editing unit enjoys the copyright of this kind of dictionary, we think that this kind of publication does not conform to the definition of "editing" in Item (11) of Article 5 of the Regulations for the Implementation of the Copyright Law, that is, "selecting several works or pieces of works according to specific requirements and compiling them into a work", that is to say, they are not works protected by the copyright law, but an original database. In practice, there is no legislation on how to protect a large number of non-original databases, which is beyond the protection scope of copyright law. But the completion of this database also needs a lot of manpower and material resources. According to the principle of fairness in China's General Principles of Civil Law, if it is copied as it is, it should be prohibited; If it is used in the new arrangement, there is still no legal basis for the extent to which it is legal and not unfair competition.
Copyright Administration Department of National Copyright Administration
1June, 999 10
Attachment:
Letter from a provincial copyright bureau
Department of Regulations of the National Copyright Administration:
An author in our province compiled two books, A Chinese-English Dictionary of Scientific and Technological Terms and B Chinese-English Dictionary of Scientific and Technological Terms, which were examined and approved by the National Committee for the Examination and Approval of Scientific and Technological Terms and published by X X Publishing House.
The arrangement of "standard nouns" in 30 books such as "X X Nouns" is as follows: the text is listed by subject; Chinese-English indexes are arranged according to all Chinese pinyin and four tones; The English-Chinese indexes are arranged in common English alphabetical order. The arrangement of two books, A Chinese-English Dictionary of Scientific Terms and B Chinese-English Dictionary of Scientific Terms, is as follows: A Chinese-English Dictionary of Scientific Terms is based on the simplified spelling of Chinese words, such as the word "Western Hemisphere", and is located in the dictionary by the initial combination of Chinese pinyin "XBQ"; B The English-Chinese dictionary of technical terms is a word code composed of the first two letters and the last letter of an English word, such as "angle", which means an/E positioning in the dictionary.
We now ask for instructions on copyright issues as follows:
1. Do 30 books such as "X X Nouns" edited by the National Committee for the Examination and Approval of Scientific and Technological Terminology enjoy copyright?
2.a Chinese-English Dictionary of Sci-tech Terms and B Chinese-English Dictionary of Sci-tech Terms only use the "standard terms" published by the National Committee for Examination and Approval of Sci-tech Terms according to their own unique arrangement. Does this constitute an infringement of the copyright of the National Committee for the Examination and Approval of Scientific and Technological Terminology?
3. "A Chinese-English dictionary of scientific and technological terms and B Chinese-English dictionary of scientific and technological terms only use the" standard terms "published by the National Committee for the Examination and Approval of Scientific and Technological Terms according to their own arrangement in 30 books published by Science Press. Does this constitute an infringement on the exclusive publishing rights of Science Press?
Hereby, please consult.