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ELIGIBILITY
FULL MEMBERSHIP
STATUTORY RIGHTS MEMBERSHIP
STATUTORY RIGHTS AGENCY MEMBERSHIP
ROYALTIES AND PAYMENTS
FAQ
MEMBERSHIP IS FREE - YOU RETAIN CONTROL
On joining, as the copyright owner you enter into an agreement
that indicates which rights VISCOPY will administer on your behalf.
VISCOPY is appointed as the exclusive agent of its member artists
and artists estates and affiliates throughout the world.
VISCOPY protects members' rights against piracy, illicit use and
copyright infringement by monitoring the use of works.
Acting on your behalf, VISCOPY provides services to those who wish
to secure permission to reproduce art works in printed and electronic
media, as well as products based on an artist's work with a one-step
clearing house for the rights and permissions.
Artists and copyright owners in artistic works join VISCOPY so
that we can act on their behalf to negotiate intellectual property
transactions between the artist and the user. These transactions
generally comprise of a licence to reproduce artistic work in advertising,
publications, newspapers and electronic media such as television,
cinema, internet and CDROM. VISCOPY also handles associated contracts,
negotiations, legal requirements and distribution of royalties.
VISCOPY collects fees and distributes royalties to you every six
months. VISCOPY's administration fee (currently 25% of gross) is
deducted at the point of distribution of royalties to members. This
fee is tax-deductible, thereby ensuring 100% of income earned is
returned to the copyright holder.
Distribution of royalties occurs twice yearly, in February and August.
 MEMBERS
INCLUDE
VISCOPY has a wide range of artist members including -
Painters
Sculptors
Illustrators
Cartoonists
Photographers
Video artists
Printmakers
Architects
Designers
Glass artists
Ceramicists
Digital artists
Furniture designers
Performance artists
Animators
Jewellery designers
Installation artists
Textile artists
Multimedia artists
ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible for membership of VISCOPY you must be a visual creator
or their agent, or in some other way own or control visual art copyright.
For example, as the executor or beneficiary of an estate of a deceased
artist.
It's also important to note that, given the reciprocal agreements
VISCOPY has with other visual arts societies throughout the world,
that you can only be a member of one such society at a time. For
example, as an Australasian resident you would not need to join
the French society ADAGP. Royalties generated internationally automatically
flow back to VISCOPY, and thence to the copyright holder.
TYPES
OF MEMBERSHIP
VISCOPY has several types of membership to accommodate various
industry needs. This reflects the two major sources of royalties
from primary rights and statutory (secondary) rights.
FULL
MEMBERSHIP
Full membership is available for visual creators and copyright
owners in artistic works for representation of both primary and
secondary rights.
STATUTORY
RIGHTS MEMBERSHIP
If you join VISCOPY as a statutory rights member, we only act
on your behalf for the collection and distribution of royalties
generated by educational and government copying. If your work is
identified as having been copied by an educational institution via
their survey practices, VISCOPY will claim this royalty on your
behalf and distribute it to you. VISCOPY also collect and distribute
statutory rights royalties from our international affiliates. As
a Statutory Rights Member VISCOPY would not act on your behalf for
primary rights licensing.
STATUTORY
RIGHTS AGENCY MEMBERSHIP
VISCOPY can act on behalf of another agent in the collection and
distribution of secondary rights royalties. Agents may include photolibraries
or Aboriginal arts communities.
ROYALTY
AND PAYMENTS
VISCOPY issues an invoice for every copyright permission licence
granted. This licence is not valid until the fee has been paid.
All fees are charged as per the VISCOPY fee tariffs which apply
to the Australian market.
Royalties are distributed twice a year to members whose works have
been licensed within that six month period. A statement accompanies
payment with details of the permission granted, fees paid and associated
deductions (Administration Fee).
FAQ
What is an exclusive licence?
An exclusive licence means that: You remain the copyright owner
and VISCOPY acts on your behalf in all copyright matters.
This ensures VISCOPY can provide an efficient service and you can
keep track of legitimate uses of your work and also receive income.
The licence does not stop you or your gallery from selling the
rights to use a 'transparency' of the work. The right to access
a transparency is separate from the right to use the copyright in
the image. Whenever you or your gallery 'loan' a transparency to
a user, please contact VISCOPY so that we can licence the copyright
of the work.
What does 'royalty free' & 'worldwide' mean?
Royalty free means that VISCOPY licenses works on the quantity printed
or manufactured not on what is sold which is often paid as a 'royalty
of sale'. If the item to be produced is merchandise such as a calendar
or book the copyright fee paid by the user is calculated as a percentage
of the retail or wholesale price.
'World wide' means that VISCOPY can licence into any territory,
for instance if a calendar, book or magazine may be distributed
to another country. If the production of the work is to occur in
another country (other than New Zealand), a VISCOPY affiliated society
in that country will licence the work.
What is the Administration Fee?
The Administration Fee is the fee VISCOPY charges for its services,
it is currently 25%. It is factored into the copyright fee charged
to the user and is deducted at the point of distribution.
Can I terminate my Membership at any time?
A Member may give written notice to the Board to terminate membership
on a proposed date, the period of notice being no less than 6 months
prior to the proposed date of termination. At this time all rights,
privileges and obligations of membership shall cease and VISCOPY
can no longer represent you. Any royalties due to you will be paid
in the following distribution.
What uses of my work will VISCOPY license?
VISCOPY will license your work according to the Australian Copyright
Act 1968 for various uses.
For example:
Publishing: books, postcards, posters, educational books and study
packs, catalogues and other products.
Digital use: CD ROMs, internet, intranet, digital publishing.
Newspapers/magazines: Notwithstanding 'Fair Dealing' provisions
of the Act, VISCOPY will licence for all uses in this context, including
'background' reproductions.
Film, Television, Theatre : All uses for film, television and theatre
other than those under the 'Fair Dealing' provisions. We also license
for 'décor', for example, a work used as part of a set or
stage design.
What is 'Fair Dealing'?
'Fair Dealing' is a provision under the Act that allows for the
reproduction or use of your copyright for the purposes of:
" Reporting the news
" Review and criticism, and private study purposes.
If someone reproduces your work for these purposes they have a
Moral Rights obligation to attribute you as the "author"
of the work.
What are some of the exceptions for visual arts users?
Promotion is important to an artist and their gallery, therefore
the following uses would generally be unlicensed by VISCOPY unless
directed by the copyright owner to license the work.
1. First sale of work
As in any promotion associated with an exhibition of your work
in a commercial or artist-run gallery, this could include:
-
Advertising the exhibition
-
Promotion of the exhibition in magazines, newspapers, art journals
or internet. However you must ensure that your work is properly
credited in order to prevent infringements of the work.
-
Self-published book or gallery published monograph of your
work or group presentation of works related to an exhibition
or gallery.
This does not include:
When your work is sold for the second or subsequent time via an
auction house or art dealer. As the artist you receive no proceeds
from the re-sale of the work. Whilst some may see this as 'promotion'
of the artist, this is not the common view of artists or their estates
who prefer to exercise their copyright and be paid.
Reproduction of your work for promotion of 're-sale' would be licensed.
For example the major Auction Houses pay licence fees to reproduce
works in Auction Catalogues.
Remember, copyright protects creators and copyright owners from
free exploitation of the work. It is time for artists to assert
their moral and economic rights.
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