Copyright is breached (or infringed) when a significant portion of a creative work - and this can be a very small part of the whole work if it is the key part - is copied without the permission of whoever owns the copyright. This is known as 'Copyright Theft'.

Copying includes entering material into or storing it on a computer, photocopying and other forms of reproduction such as printing, photography, film and video. Making duplicates of favourite tapes, CDs, videos, computer games etc. is also a breach of copyright.

Copying a small amount of, say, a book for personal research purposes is not generally considered to be a breach of copyright.

Also, copying a small amount of material for radio, film or television news broadcasts is generally allowed. For print based media and the news a similar dispensation can be made, except for photographs, but a clear credit of the author is usually required.

If you need to quote from somebody else's book in your book, for example, then you will need permission form the copyright owner. The same applies to samples of other people's recorded words, music or performances.

If the copied material is broadcast to even a small number of members of the public, then copyright is also breached. This especially applies to audio recordings, films, television programmes and videos.

Any breach of copyright is a criminal office. In addition, when you sell an item you do not automatically sell the copyright with it.

There are also international copyright laws and agreements, such as the Berne Convention and the Universal Copyright Convention.

It is therefore always best to check with the copyright owner before publishing even a small amount of somebody else's words, artwork, music or performances.

Obviously it can be very difficult to find out every time that Copyright theft occurs; but the truth has a habit of finding a way out. If you do breach somebody else's Copyright, you could be sued by the copyright holder - you will probably be found guilty too, as the law takes copyright issues very seriously.

Depending on where you are in the world (for example you may need to register your work in some countries before full legal protection is obtained); the courts can stop all future copying. They can also award all of your profits in compensation for lost earnings to the true copyright holder, order the confiscation of your illegal stock, fine you big time or even throw you in jail for awhile! (The fines and jail sentences are usually reserved for breaches of copyright by businesses or where commercial gain is at work).

Another key point to know about is this: if you illegally import material that breaches copyright (e.g. counterfeit designer goods) you can also be fined any amount (at the discretion of the courts) and sent straight to jail!!!

We love copyright! Mainly we produce publishable (print and digital media based) works, so it's all we need. We always use the appropriate copyright notice and you should do the same. Then you can sleep secure in the knowledge that your are pretty much bulletproof should anybody try to steal and/or try to profit from your work without your permission... awesome isn't it?