Who is the subject of copyright?

The subject of copyright is the creator of the work, the natural person, legal person or other organization that enjoys copyright according to law.

Copyright owners include:

(1) author;

(2) Other citizens, legal persons or other organizations that enjoy copyright in accordance with the Copyright Law.

Interpretation: This article defines the subject of copyright.

I. Types of copyright owners

The copyright owner, that is, the undertaker of copyright rights and obligations, is also called the subject of copyright. Copyright owners include authors who created works and citizens, legal persons and other organizations who did not participate in the creation of works and assumed copyright.

According to the Civil Law, citizens and legal persons have the capacity of civil rights and are the subjects of civil rights. Copyright is a civil right, and citizens and legal persons can naturally become copyright owners. Legal person can be the subject of copyright.

The state is a special civil subject, and under certain circumstances, the state can become the copyright owner. There are usually four situations in which a country becomes a copyright owner:

First, citizens and legal persons hand over the property rights in copyright to the state, and the state is the copyright owner.

Second, the property rights in the copyright of works with unknown authors are nationalized.

Third, if a citizen of an organization not under collective ownership dies and there is no heir or legatee, the property right in the copyright belongs to the state.

Fourth, if a legal person is terminated and there is no person who undertakes its rights and obligations, the property rights in copyright shall be owned by the state.

Second, the different meanings of copyright owner.

Copyright includes personal rights and property rights. Personal rights in copyright belong to the author, who is the subject of personal rights. When the property right in copyright is not transferred, the author is the subject of property right. In this case, the author is the complete copyright owner.

The property right in copyright can be separated from the author. After the author transfers the property right, the successor of the right is the subject of the property right in copyright, usually called the copyright owner. If the author transfers part of the property rights in copyright to others, others are the copyright owners who enjoy part of the property rights. If the author transfers all the property rights in the copyright to others, others are the copyright owners who enjoy all the property rights.

If the copyright owner is a citizen, after his death, the property right in the copyright is transferred to the obligee. If the copyright owner is a legal person, the property right in the copyright may be transferred to the obligee after the legal person is changed; After the termination of the legal person, the property right in the copyright is transferred to the obligee.