Commons:Copyright rules by territory/Botswana

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This page provides an overview of copyright rules of Botswana relevant to uploading works into Wikimedia Commons. Note that any work originating in Botswana must be in the public domain, or available under a free license, in both Botswana and the United States before it can be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. If there is any doubt about the copyright status of a work from Botswana, refer to the relevant laws for clarification.

Background

Botswana was formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland. The country adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966.

Botswana has been a member of the Berne Convention since 15 April 1998, the WIPO treaty since 27 January 2005 and the World Trade Organization since 31 May 1995, as well as a signatory to various other international treaties.[1]

As of 2018 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an agency of the United Nations, listed the Copyright & Neighboring Rights Act, 2000 (Act No. 6 of 2006) as the main IP law enacted by the legislature of Botswana.[1] WIPO holds the text of this law in their WIPO Lex database.[2]

General rules

Under Act 6 of 2006,

  • Copyright in individual works is protected 50 years from the death of the author.[2006 Section 10.1]
  • For joint works, copyright is protected for 50 years from death of the last surviving author.[2006 Section 10.2]
  • For collective works and audiovisual works copyright is protected 50 years from the date of publication.[2006 Section 10.3]
  • For anonymous works or pseudonymous works copyright is protected 50 years from the date of publication.[2006 Section 10.4]
  • For works of applied art, copyright is protected for 25 years from creation.[2006 Section 10.5]

Every period provided for under the preceding subsections shall run to the end of the calendar year in which it would otherwise expire.[2006 Section 10.6]

Not protected

Shortcut

See also: Commons:Unprotected works

Under Act 6 of 2006, no protection shall extend to (a) any idea, procedure, system, method of operation, concept, principle, discovery or mere data, even if expressed, described, explained, illustrated or embodied in a work; (b) any official text of a legislative, administrative or legal nature, as well as any official translation thereof; (c) a broadcast which infringes, or to the extent that it infringes, the copyright in another broadcast or in a cable programme; or (d) a sound recording or film which is, or to the extent that it is, a copy of a previous sound recording or film.[2006 Section 6.2]

Freedom of panorama

See also: Commons:Freedom of panorama

 Not OK: The Act of 2006 makes no provision for freedom of panorama other than "the reproduction and the broadcasting or other communication to the public, for the purpose of reporting current events, of short excerpts of a work seen or heard in the course of such events, to the extent justified by the purpose;"[2006 Section 18.b]

See also

Citations

  1. a b Botswana Copyright and Related Rights (Neighboring Rights). WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization (2018). Retrieved on 2018-11-04.
  2. Copyright & Neighboring Rights Act, 2000 (Act No. 6 of 2006). Botswana (2006). Retrieved on 2018-11-04.
Caution: The above description may be inaccurate, incomplete and/or out of date, so must be treated with caution. Before you upload a file to Wikimedia Commons you should ensure it may be used freely. See also: Commons:General disclaimer