Photographic Works: Draft Bill to Amend the Copyright Law

The bill amends Section 34 of Law No. 11,723. Currently this section grants photographic works a 20-year term as of the date of its first publication. Under the bill, copyright in photographic works will lie with the author for life and with the author’s heirs or beneficiaries for 70 years after the author’s death (in accordance with Section 5 of the Intellectual Property Law).

The draft bill also eliminates the obligation to record, for photographic or cinematographic works, the date, place of publication, the name or trademark of the author or publisher. It also deletes the criminal sanction for non-compliance of these requirements.

In addition, the bill incorporates a new Section 85 bis, as a transitional provision, under which the provisions of Section 34 bis will apply to photographic works that have entered the public domain within the term set forth in that section. Section 34 bis states that the provisions of Section 34 (as amended by this initiative) shall apply to cinematographic works that have entered the public domain within the term set forth (the author’s life plus 70 years after the author’s death, according to the amendment of this initiative), without prejudice to the copies made while these works were in the public domain.

For more information, please contact:

		Iván A. Poli
		Florencia Tablado