höfundarétt

Höfundaréttur, often translated as copyright, is a legal right granted to the creator of original works of authorship. It provides the creator with exclusive rights to control the use and distribution of their work for a specified period. This protection typically covers literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, including software. The core principle behind höfundaréttur is to incentivize creativity by allowing creators to benefit from their intellectual labor.

In most jurisdictions, copyright protection arises automatically upon the creation of an original work, without the need for registration. However, registration can offer additional legal advantages, such as prima facie evidence of ownership. The rights granted by höfundaréttur generally include the right to reproduce the work, create derivative works, distribute copies, and publicly perform or display the work.

The duration of copyright protection varies by country but often extends for the life of the author plus a certain number of years, or for a fixed term for works made for hire or anonymous works. Once copyright expires, the work enters the public domain, meaning it can be used freely by anyone without permission. Exceptions to copyright protection exist, such as fair use or fair dealing, which permit limited use of copyrighted material for purposes like criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research.