Legal regulation of the character as the face of the brand
- What is protected by copyright?
- How is the character protected?
- Russian and world regulation of the character as an object of intellectual property.
What is protected by copyright?
Article 1259 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation establishes a list of objects of copyright (hereinafter - "CR"), such as literary, musical, photographic works, etc. CR applies both to a literary object as a whole and to any of its constituent parts, where the character also comes in. The main thing is that the character is an independent result of the author's work.
In other words, the character must be unique, have some distinctive characteristics, thanks to which one can judge his independence and the possibility of using it apart from the work.
The character can also be expressed in any form, that is:
It is the question of the independence of the character and the possibility of using it in isolation from the original work that is one of the extremely important issues when registering the rights to a character.
How is the character protected?
Using a character as an advertising object and as the face of a brand is a rather winning way of promoting a product if such a character is recognizable, known and loved by the audience.
Based on this, in pursuit of increasing the brand's audience, the character is becoming one of the most popular ways to do this. One of the most popular litigation is the use of characters without proper authorization from the authors. It is important to understand that a violation of civil law in terms of using without obtaining the appropriate permission for this can lead to huge losses and lengthy litigation.
A character, along with other objects of copyright, is subject to protection during the life of the author and 70 years after death. During this period, the author retains the right to receive remuneration.
Russian and world regulation of the character as an object of intellectual property
At first glance, a certain cumulative approach to the regulation of copyright, the protection of individual works of art and other results of intellectual activity has been established in world practice. But, in this case, the regulation of the character differs from country to country.
For example, in France, a character cannot be considered an independent copyright object, regardless of any conditions.
A similar practice generally unites all European countries. In Germany, legislators are more lenient towards the character than in France. For the recognition of a character as an independent unit, an appropriate determination of the court is required, which, having studied all the circumstances of the case, especially regarding the efforts made to create this character.
A radically different and broader approach has developed in America. The precedent court system has made it possible to expand the range of items that can be recognized as a character. Thus, there are a number of precedents where characters were not even recognized as certain fictional characters, but their components, accessories and distinctive items belonging to the original character, since they are some kind of distinctive objects that play an important role in the appearance of the character and his identification.
Also, the author's character often has a name that is inextricably linked with the character itself. It is logical that the name, along with the character, is protected by copyright and recognized as its object. It is important that the name must be a unique word or expression.
For the correct use of the character in the work, you should use primarily animated, fictional personalities, since copyright applies only to fictional characters. If you use an image of a real person, then in this case it is impossible to secure your right to use with the help of copyright.
When creating a character, the author has all the corresponding rights to it, including the right to use it in advertising, work, and so on. Despite the legislative consolidation of the author's rights, as an additional measure to protect your rights, you can use the methods below, since a certain procedure for registering a right is not legally enshrined in Russia.
One of these ways of securing the right is the deposit procedure. Escrow companies will enter your intellectual property in a specific register, register the object and issue a certificate of escrow. The main thing is that the deposit procedure does not guarantee complete protection against misuse of your character, but it is an additional way to protect your rights. You can read more about the deposit procedure in a separate article on our website.
Thus, the use of a character in the work of a brand is one of the most popular and effective marketing techniques. Along with this, as your character gains popularity, the threat of misuse of that character may arise. In order to avoid this, you must properly register the rights to it, using different methods, depending on the jurisdiction of your business. If you need help in registering your rights, you can contact A4 Law Firm, where you will be provided with professional assistance in this.
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