[okfn-discuss] Copyright on crosswords

[David Jones]

Hmm, I thought the UK had a "work for hire" rule, but it's not quite so simple:

from http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/11

11 First ownership of copyright.

(1)The author of a work is the first owner of any copyright in it,
subject to the following provisions.

(2)Where a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work [F1, or a
film,] is made by an employee in the course of his employment, his
employer is the first owner of any copyright in the work subject to
any agreement to the contrary.
--

So if I employ Auracaria to produce a crossword then I have the
copyright.  However, if I buy a service from "We Can Make Crosswords
For You Limited" and they employ Auracaria to make a crossword, then
they have the copyright.

I suppose crosswords are capable of having both copyright and moral
rights (being a "literary work", but I wouldn't be surprised if
someone were prepared to contest it).  However, if Auracaria wrote a
computer program to generate the crossword (seems unlikely in
Auracaria's case, but perhaps not in other cases) then he may have
lost his moral rights (!):