The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau was formed in order to afford copyright protection for authors, playwrights, scriptwriters, poets, musicians and associated literary crafts.
Authors are invited to submit their works subject to the conditions below.
Upon the application being received, it will then be processed, and a numbered copyright certificate recording the date the media work was registered will then be issued. This will display the name of the claimant of the copyright submitted, together with the title of the work.
Applications
All copyrights must be lodged in duplicate, by CD-ROM or floppy disc. Manuscripts or paper recordings are now no longer accepted due to their bulk for storage. Upon receipt, one copy will be stored within The Copyright Bureau, while the secondary submission will be lodged with one Penelope Paddle Solicitor in order to afford further protection to the applicant.A certificate of copyright registration of the work submitted will then be issued, commencing from the date the work was received at The Copyright Bureau. This certificate duly stamped and signed will be dispatched back to the copyright holder within approximately 14 days of clearance of payment of the fees due.
Manuscripts received must have an accompanying letter to the effect that the documents or the contents on the floppy disk or CD-ROM submitted are the original work of the applicant.
Submissions sent on CD-ROM or floppy disk must be clearly marked or have a label firmly attached clearly showing the name and address of the applicant and title for the work contained on it.
Submission Guidelines
Only one author can submit their work on any one CD-ROM or floppy disc. (Multiple authors cannot submit on the same disc), the exception being for joint authors for the same titled media work. In the case of joint authorship, only one copyright certificate will be issued, but will record the names of both authors.All applications for copyright must be made in duplicate (i.e. two floppy discs each containing the same treatment/script for copyrighting) by floppy disc or CD-ROM and must be accompanied by a covering letter stating the applicants:
- Full name(s) of copyright holder(s)
- Company (if applicable)
- Address(es) of applicant(s) at time of application
- Title of work(s) submitted
Cost
In the event of multiple applications being received on a single disk, then each additional copyright may be registered and a certificate issued for a nominal fee of £5 (UKP) per extra copyright, provided as stated above, that this copyright is included on the self same floppy disc or CD-ROM as the initial work submitted, i.e. if three manuscripts are submitted on one disc (in duplicate) then for a fee of £40 (UKP), plus £1.50 (UKP) postage and packing, three independent certificates will be issued. There is no limit to multiple applications, in theory, provided they can be contained on the same disc.Multiple Discs With Multiple Copyrights
The fees quoted below are for copyrights registered on one disc (duplicated for registration with The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau and Penelope Anne Joshi Solicitor). Each separate disc containing extra copyrights is considered a separate entry. I.e. 8 copyrights registered between 2 discs will be £46.50 for each disk containing 4 copyrights.
Pricing Guide
| Floppy Disc or CD-ROM | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Copyrights (per disc) | Price £(UKP) | P+P £(UKP) | Total £(UKP) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 30.00 | 1.50 | 31.50
| 2
| 35.00
| 1.50
| 36.50
| 3
| 40.00
| 1.50
| 41.50
| 4
| 45.00
| 1.50
| 46.50
| 5
| 50.00
| 1.50
| 51.50
| 6
| 55.00
| 1.50
| 56.50
| 7
| 60.00
| 1.50
| 61.50
| 8
| 65.00
| 1.50
| 66.50
| 9
| 70.00
| 1.50
| 71.50
| 10
| 75.00
| 1.50
| 76.50
| |
Payment
Cheques are to be made payable to 'The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau' at the below address:- 'The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau'
- 110 Trafalgar Road
- Portslade
- East Sussex
- BN41 1GS
For further inquiries, please email us at info@copyrightbureau.co.uk
Caveat
As a note of caution, it is often said of literary works that there is no such thing as an original idea and that all stories are subservient to four basic plots and that all genres arising are variations of a basic theme, thus all submissions registered are recorded to the effect that the applicant/author does truly believe their submission to be his or her own original work at the time of application for copyright.In the event of proof of copyright being requested or of a legal dispute of copyright arising, then the certificate issued will be proof of that copyright in that format having been registered as from the date so entered, and if required, then one of the originals deposited or copy of same can be produced duly attested and certified as having remained securely sealed with both The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau with immediate effect from date of receipt and Penelope Joshi Solicitor within seven days of receipt at the Copyright Bureau's registered office.
The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau will not be responsible for any claims that may be made to a copyright in any form whatsoever whether it be theatrical play, screenplay, musical composition, book, poetry, prose or any other written or recorded copyright so claimed or arising from a work registered prior to a copyright being received at The United Kingdom Copyright Bureau, or arising from a copyright pledged or secured prior to the issue of the copyright certificate as from the date of receipt at these offices.
