Sharebility Copyright Policy
Notification of Copyright Infringement
The developers of the (“Sharebility”) system respect the intellectual property rights of others and expect the system users to do the same.
It is Sharebility’s policy, in appropriate circumstances and at its discretion, to disable and/or terminate the accounts of users who repeatedly infringe or are repeatedly charged with infringing the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of others.
In accordance with Uganda's Copyright and Neighbouring Act of 2006 , Sharebility will respond expeditiously to claims of copyright infringement committed using the Sharebility website (the “Site”) that are reported to via the issue reporting section on the resource page.
If you are a copyright owner, or are authorized to act on behalf of one, or authorized to act under any exclusive right under copyright, please report alleged copyright infringements taking place on or through the Site. Upon receipt of the Notice, the Sharebility administrators will take whatever action, as deemed appropriate, including removal of the challenged material from the Site.
Copyright FAQ
What is copyright?
Copyright is a form of protection for “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic and other works, that are fixed in a tangible medium of expression. For example, copyright protects published and unpublished books, poetry, plays, movies, music scores, song recordings, computer software, photographs, paintings, and drawings. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, inventions, systems or methods of operation, but it may protect the way in which such things are expressed.
When does copyright protection begin?
Your work is protected by copyright from the moment you create the work and fix it in a tangible form. Registration of a work with the Government Copyright Office is generally required if you want to bring a lawsuit for infringement of your work.
How long does a copyright last?
The term of protection for a copyright depends on a number of factors, including whether the work was published, the date of first publication of the work, where a work was first published and whether the work is anonymous, pseudonymous or a work made for hire. In general, copyright protection for a work first published in after January 1, 1978 lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years from the date of death. For a joint work that is authored by several people, copyright protection lasts for 70 years after the date of death of the last surviving author. The copyright term for an anonymous or pseudonymous work or a work made for hire is 95 years from the date of first publication or 120 years from the date of creation, whichever expires first.
Do I own my work or article? Do I have the right to post my work or article on Sharebility?
The answers to these questions will depend upon your particular situation. The general rule is that the person who creates a work is the author and owner of the work. However, there are exceptions to that rule for works made for hire and for copyrights that have been transferred, assigned, willed or given to another party.
May I use someone else's work without getting permission?
In general, you should not use a copyright protected work without permission and, if you do so, the copyright owner may bring an infringement action against you. However, under the “fair use” doctrine in copyright law, there may be circumstances in which it is permissible to use limited portions of a work without permission, such as quoting part of a work, for purposes like commentary, criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship and research. Whether a particular use qualifies as a fair use is determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the specific circumstances of the use.
Definitions
The person who creates the original expression in a work is its author. The author is also the owner of the copyright in a work unless the author assigned or transferred the copyright to another person or entity through a written agreement. For works made for hire, the author is the employer or the party that commissioned the work.
A joint work is a work prepared by two or more authors with the intention that their contributions be combined into a single work. Unless the joint authors agree otherwise, each joint author has an equal and undivided ownership in the entire joint work and can exploit the work by granting licenses to third parties without permission from the other joint owners. Each joint author has a duty to account to the other joint owners for a share of any profits earned from his or her exploitation of the joint work.
What is a work made for hire?
A work made for hire is either a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment or a statutorily defined category of work specially ordered or commissioned in a written agreement. The author of a work made for hire is the employer of the person who created the work or the party that commissioned creation of the work.
What is the public domain?
A work of authorship is said to be in the public domain if it is not protected by copyright law. A work may be in the public domain for a number of reasons, including publication prior to enactment of a copyright law, expiration of the copyright term or dedication of the work to the public domain by the copyright owner. Works in the public domain may be used freely by anyone without permission.
