REGULATIONS
FOR THE APPLICATION OF THE SPANISH
COPYRIGHT ACT (1879)
TITLE I
OF WORKS
----
FIRST CHAPTER
Authors and Owners
ARTICLE 1
For the purposes of the Copyright Act, the term "works"
covers all produced or capable of publication by means of writing, drawing,
printing, painting, engraving, lithography, stamping,
autography, photography or by any other means
of printing or reproduction known at present
or hereinafter invented.
ARTICLE 2
For the purposes of the Copyright Act, the term "author"
means the person who conceives and gives form
to any scientific or literary work
or who creates and executes any artistic work, provided he complies with the statutory requirements. ARTICLE 3 The signature and submission by a person claiming to be its author shall be admitted, in the absence of proof to the contrary. Any controversy about the falsification or usurpation shall be decided exclusively by the Courts. If an application to register a work is pending and a third party raises a question regarding its property or propiety, and he lodges a formal objection to the registration, the registration shall not be suspended. However such opposition shall be annotated in the registry file and certificates issued thereafter should bear the caption that "an objection has been lodged". ARTICLE 4 In the absence of proof to the contrary, the one who identifies himself in scientific and literary works as a translator, arranger, copyist, maker of extracts or compiler shall be taken to be so, provided that there is no stipulation to the contrary in any international treaty. ARTICLE 5 In order to re-cast, copy, extract, compile, or reproduce original Spanish works, it is essential to show a written authorisation given by the author or the owner whose property right has not yet expired according to the Act. In the absence of this evidence, they shall not enjoy the benefit of this law, and the inscription of their works at the copyright registry shall have no effects. | ARTICLE 6 The author of unpublished works shall be taken to be the person who publishes those works that were in manuscript form, not yet published and addes to them preliminary speeches, notes, appendices, vocabularies, glossaries, and other illustrations or the author who just publishes the manuscript text alone. ARTICLE 7 The property rights given to publishers by virtue of article 26 of the Act shall continue until evidence is produced about the identity of the author or translator previously unknown, ommitted or concealed. When this proof is succesfully verified,the author or translator or his heirs shall substitute the publisher of the anonymous or pseudonymous work, replacing them on the contractual obligations they may have met. In the absence of any contracts, the issue of damages and any other claims made by interested parties shall be submitted to experts' reports appointed by the two parties and, in case of disagreement, to a third expert appointed by the judge. ARTICLE 8 In order to be protected by art. 3 of the Act, it is also necessary: 1.- For the authors of maps, plans or scientific designs to declare that such works are the product of their minds, and sign them, identifying them with their own identity cards. |
2.- For music composers to comply with similar formalities, submitting three copies of the work, if it has been printed. If the work has been performed but not printed, it is enough to comply with the conditions set up in article 36 of the Act, submitting the copy to the central copyright office at the Ministry of Public Works. ARTICLE 9 All copyright transfers, irrespective of their value, must be formalized in a public deed and recorded in the corresponding register. The transferee shall not be be protected by the law if this requirement is not met. ARTICLE 10 The expert evidence mentioned in art 27 of the Act shall be produced in accordance to procedural (civil) rules, the outcome of which shall be binding upon the Courts. ARTICLE 11 Additionally, all issues regarding dramatic and musical works shall be subject to the provisions specified in the title II of this Rules. CHAPTER II Official documents ARTICLE 12 If one of the litigants, or his lawyer, sought to exercise the right conferred by articles 16, | 17 and 18 of this Act, they shall request the Court concerned, which shall grant or reject the licence, taking into account the public interest or family interests and the provisions established under art. 947 of the criminal procedural Act. In proceedings or cases where the Public prosecutor is or has been involved, it is essential hear the Finance Minister and the interested parties before granting or refusing the corresponding licence. ARTICLE 13 In order to access and copy documents or papers preserved in state archives, it shall be always necessary an order of the Ministry to which they depend or from the Head of the corresponding department, if he has faculty to do so. ARTICLE 14 Permission to publish statutes, decrees, royal orders, regulations and other dispositions issued by public authorities and mentioned in article 28 of this Act may be granted by the Minister, central department, or authority that promulgated them, and they shall consider whether critical annotations, commentaries and notes deserve such title. In any case, the date and the source of the permission shall be duly acknowledged. |
CHAPTER III Newspapers ARTICLE 15 In this part, periodicals mean daily and weekly newspapers, magazines and any other type of printed matter issued one or more times a day or regularly or irregularly at stated intervals bearing a permanent title, whether of scientific, political, literary or any other nature. ARTICLE 16 Newspaper proprietors who want to secure their rights shall made explicit the nature of their work when submitting their declaration to the copyright office, without prejudice of the rights belonging to the authors of articles or works included in these publications when they have only granted the right of inclusion. The registration made by newspaper proprietors not only secures the property over the works submitted as owners who request an inscription, it also extends to the property of authors or their sucessors in title who have not waived their rights. ARTICLE 17 Authors who fell within the situation mentioned in the preceding article shall not be required to register their works again. | If they need to justify their rights, they may request and obtain a certificate from the copyright registrar specifying that they have legallly acquired rights after the registration of the corresponding newspaper or periodical. If making the application mentioned in the preceding paragraph, the interested party shall indicate the issue of the newspaper in which the work whose ownership he desires to certify was inserted and the copyright registrar shall issue a special certificate of this work, identifying it in the appropriate manner to avoid confusion with any other work. ARTICLE 18 No reservation of rights expressed either in general terms or in a specific way as a footnote to each work means that all the material inserted in newspapers can be reproduced without authorisation in any other publication. However, and in any case, the periodical reproducing something from another should quote the original from which it is copied. ARTICLE 19 The rule established in the preceding paragraph is subject to the following exception in relation to drawings, lithographies, music and the rest of artistic works inserted in periodicals and novels and scientific, artistic and literary works even when published in serialised manner or by chapters. These works shall, without the need of reservation of rights, be excepted from the rule. In order to reproduce or copy the works mentioned in the preceding paragraph, authorisation from the |
author or translator concerned, or from the proprietor in the case that they would have transferred their works. CHAPTER IV Right of Collection ARTICLE 20 The right specified in art. 32 has effect, subject to any agreement to the contrary, or when the right to make a collection has not been expressly sold to another person. ARTICLE 21 If the author or his heirs has transferred the ownership of his works but he has not made any explicit reference to the right of collection, he or his heirs may collect the works in a complete or selected edition authorised by the law. However if the publisher still has rights in such works and are copies for sale, they shall not be able to sell them separately. In this case, the author or his heirs may only sell or accept subscriptions of the entire collection as published by them whether selected or complete. CHAPTER V Copyright Registration ARTICLE 22 Those who seek to enjoy the benefits of the Act shall include in their application to the copyright office: | 1. A submission form on linen paper signed by the interested party, where the nature, the circumstances and the legal concept on which he applies for registration are indicated. 2. Three copies of the work or the part of the work intended to be registered. If the application refers to the case mentioned in art 36 of the Act, a manuscript of the literary work and another manuscript of the same type with the melodies and accompaniment of the musical part. 3. Submission of works and periodical collections must be in plain bound copies signed on the cover page or on the first issue by the owner of his representative in the act of inscription and initialed or stamped each of the sheets or issues they have. No issue or work in progress shall be accepted at the registry until the moment in which they form a volume. 4. The identity card and the legalized power of attorney or the simple authorisation in writing if the submission is made on behalf of another person. ARTICULO 23 Submissions to the copyright office must include the following information: Name, surname and address of the applicant Title of the work Category of work Name and surname of author, arranger, etc. Name, surname and address of owner |
Address of the premises where the printing or reproduction was carried out and the procedure followed. Year and place where the printing took place Edition and number of copies Volumes, size and pages Publication data, and other enabling data availabe to identify the work and to meet the regulatory requirements ARTICLE 24 All property transmissions and when they affect copyright shall be minutely recorded in the respective reference sheet. For this purpose, the interested party shall produce adequate and authentic testimony of the document involved that shall be kept in the office while the original shall be returned to the person who submitted it. ARTICLE 25 When the certificate of definitive inscription is issued, the person who had applied or someone authorised on his befalf must sign the receipt in the corresponding book. ARTICLE 26 If the original document of inscription is lost, the interested party may request and obtain other copies of these certificates issued upon appropiately-stamped paper. Such certified copy shall produce the same legal effect as the original document. | ARTICLE 27 Additionally the copyright office shall issue certificates about the state of works after an application, and after having received the reports from the regional copyrigh offices if these works have such origin. However they shall always be issued after a petition. CHAPTER VI Copyright Office ARTICLE 28 The Copyright Office is part of the Ministry of Public Works and shall use the necessary books to achieve its aims. For this purpose, not only indexes and supplementary books but also ground books (libros-matrices) shall be used to record, in a definitive and ordered manner, according to the following classification: scientific and literary works, dramatic and musical works, works of artistic character other than those expressly exempted by art. 37 of this Act, and periodicals. The recording of each of the works submitted shall rigorously follow a chrono- logical order, and records shall be given the appropriate number, with a special sheet in which all circumstances shall be annotated. ARTICLE 29 At the provincial copyright offices, a book of daily entries and a provisional register with counterfoils, having a spread sheet |
on which the definitive certificate is copied shall be kept. ARTICLE 30 The registrar shall annotate in the book of daily entries the works submitted, issuing a certificate of inscription when the work and the corresponding documents meet the requirements established. This pro- visional certificate shall be replaced by the definitive certificate as soon as it is published in the provincial official Bulletin. ARTICLE 31 The submission of the docu- ments mentioned in art. 22 shall be annotated following a strict chronological order in the book of daily entries at the Ministry of Public Works, in the provincial libraries and at High School Libraries in the capital of provinces where there is no provincial library. These institutions shall give a provisional document with the hour and date of the application, the number and the rest of circumstances to identify the work submitted to the interested party. No fee or bonus shall be payable for this receipt or for registration at the copyright office. ARTICLE 32 All provisional entries made from applications for registration shall be recorded in ground books | within thirty days from the date of the entry. When subsequent changes affecting works submitted in provinces are recorded in the central copyright office, this period shall be counted from the date of entry of the appropriate semestral report. ARTICLE 33 The Gazeta de Madrid shall issue quarterly a list of works submitted for registration during such period, leaving copies of the work submitted at the corresponding libraries within thirty days following the publication of the list. The official in charge at the copyright office shall be responsible for any failure to carry out the provisions of this article. Officials in charge at the provincial registries shall bear the same responsibility and obligation regarding the works deposited according to art.34 of the Law. ARTICLE 34 1. In order to comply with art. 34 of the Act, one of the copies sent by Governors, shall be deposited at the Ministry of Public Works whereas another copy shall be given to the National Library. 2. The third copy of the scientific and literary works submitted at the central copyright office shall be deposited at the library of the University of Madrid. 3. The copy of the musical works to be given to the Ministry of Public Works shall be sent to the national School of Music and Declamation. |
This copy shall always be available to the copyright office in order to make the necessary authentications and verifications. 4. When the registration concerns works mentioned in the second paragraph of art. 36 of the Copyright Act, they shall be given by the General Directorate of the (corresponding) branch to the National School specified there. Likewise these copies shall always be available to the copyright office for the purposes set out above. ARTICLE 35 Both governors and head of libraries shall bear the responsibility for sending the corresponding copies and their docummentation immediately, in order to comply with stipulations derived from international treaties and without prejudice to the action required by art. 34 of the Copyright Act. ARTICLE 36 Spanish representatives abroad shall accept and admit under receipt, and immediately send to the Ministry of Public Works, all the works covered by the Copyright Act, provided they are accompanied by the required documents duly legalized. Works submitted following the procedure stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall enjoy all legal benefits from the day and hour of their submission. The Ministry of Public Works shall immediately acknowledge the receipt to the Ministry of State and shall send the same day via the same diplomatic channel the certificate of definitive inscription for it to be given to the interested party. | ARTICLE 37 Copyright Book registers shall be initialled upon their first and final pages by a civil servant from the Ministry of Public Works with the approval from of the head of the General Director of Public Education and the Civil Governor of the province in cases regarding the situation mentioned in the second paragraph of article 33 of the Copyright Act.The end of the volume shall follow an appropriate protocol in which the sheets used and any other circumstances are declared. ARTICLE 38 An enquiry report shall be made in order to correct any fundamental mistake or ommission evidenced in the book registers. The General Directorate of Public Education shall decide the matter after hearing the interested party. ARTICLE 39 Provincial copyright registries shall be under the direction and authority of Civil Governors, who shall be responsible for the faithful observance of these copyright regulations. The central copyright office shall be directed by a civil servant appointed by the Ministry of Public Works upon recommendation of the General Directorate of Public Education. |
ARTICLE 40 The central and the provincial copyright registries shall be open the same days on which the offices of the Ministry of Public Works is open. Three hours per day shall be offered to the service of the public. This should be announced in official gazettes, and on the notice boards at the copyright registries. CHAPTER VII LEGAL EFFECTS ARTICLE 41 Twenty five years after the death of the hour, the compulsory heir who, in accordance with art. 6 of the Copyright Act, is entitled to acquire the works were assigned by the person from whom he inherits, may, subject to the submission of the documents justifying this claim, request and obtain registration of his rights at the copyright registry. ARTICLE 42 All the works published after 12 January 1879 shall enjoy the benefits of the Copyright Act if their authors and owners meet the requirements stipulated in the Act and the Regulations. | ARTICLE 43 Works that, on 12 January 1879, have not fallen into the public domain, may also be registered for the period left until the new terms and benefits of the Act, provided that the inscription is made legally and that the time that has already run is supported with authentic evidence so the remaining term may be fixed in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act. ARTICLE 44 Those who fall within the scope of paragraph 3 of art. 52 shall also support their case with similar proof if, as authors, translators or heirs, they want to recover works which have passed into the public domain. When such proof is exhibited at the registry, an annotation of the right for the time that still remains and the one that has already passed after the death of the author until the new period given by the Copyright Act shall be recorded. ARTICLE 45 Authors or their heirs who are entitled to recover the copyright and who fail to register within a period of one year shall be taken as if they had given up their rights. |
CHAPTER VIII FAMILY COUNCIL ARTICLE 46 Until the Family Council mentioned in art. 44 of the Copyright Act is not regulated, it shall be constituted by the Mayor where the heir has his residency, and his four most closely related male relatives, two from his paternal side and two from his maternal side,living in the same town or village or in one not more than six leagues distant. ARTICLE 47 When the degree of family relationship is the same, an elder relative shall be preferred to the youngest one. ARTICLE 48 When the closest relatives of a heir are located in a town or village which is more than six leagues distant from his home, the Mayor shall invite them but cannot oblige them, against their wishes, to accept the appointment to become part of the Family Council. ARTICLE 49 If there were no sufficient number of relatives or they would not have accepted the appointment, the Family Council shall be constituted by honest neighbours selected by the Mayor from among the friends of the parents of the heir. | ARTICLE 50 The meeting of the Family Council shall take place in the Town Hall. A majority of the attendants is enough to discuss and to decide. ARTICLE 51 The Mayor shall always preside the Family Council. He possesses the consultative vote and in the event of a tie, he shall have the casting vote. He may delegate to the Deputy Mayors. CHAPTER IX PENALTIES. ARTICLE 52 Owners who have declared on the cover page of their works to have done the legal deposit but have not done so in the term legally specified, shall incur in the penalty stipulated in art. 552 ff. of the Penal Code. ARTICLE 53 In order to fulfil the obligation imposed by art. 45 of the Copyright Act, all book merchants and booksellers shall keep a record with the name of the publishers and printers of the works they are selling. If they fail to comply with this requirement, they shall be legally responsible. |
CHAPTER X Transition from the Old to the New System ARTICLE 54 Works which at the time of the publication of these copyright regulations have not yet entered the public domain and which enjoy protection under the previous legislation do not need to fulfil the new legal requirements. However authors and owners who deem convenient may convert their old inscriptions into new ones according to these regulations, provided they specify, in the most precise manner, and under their sole responsibility, the dates of the publication and submission of the work to the old registries, and the period of time for which the works have enjoyed the protection of the law. ARTICLE 55 The compensation mentioned in art. 55 of the Copyright Act shall be determined by the experts appointed by the parties and a third party appointed by the judge in case of disagreement between them, in accordance with the civil procedural rules. However such compensation shall only refer to the stock which are submitted and duly supported by documentary evidence. ARTICLE 56 Sucessors in title of authors to whom, according to art. 28 of the Literary Property Act (1847), the rights have reverted or shall revert, may register their rights in | the copyright office in the cases where art. 52 of the Copyright Act preserves and recognizes any rights acquired under earlier laws. ARTICLE 57 Those who, as a result of the transfer of a work before 10 June 1847 are entitled to recover rights in accordance with article of the Literary Property Act (1847) shall, when they apply for the registration of their rights, specify the date of death of the author for the registrar to be able to indicate the recovery date of the said rights. ARTICLE 58 Those who have acquired literary property before the Literary Property Act (1847), or their sucessors in title, who, within the period of one year, counted in the manner specified in these regulations, fail to register their rights within the period mentioned in art. 29 of such Act shall lose their rights, and the rights shall therefore revert to the previous owner. TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS ARTICLE 59 The term of one year given in art. 36 of the Copyright Act to verify the inscription shall be counted from the day in which the Gaceta de Madrid announces that the copyright registries regulated here have become operative. |
ARTICLE 60 The General Directorate of Public Education shall, as soon as possible, take the necessary measures for the setting up of the copyright registries. TITLE II THEATRES FIRST CHAPTER Dramatic and musical works ARTICLE 61 Dramatic and musical works performed in public are subject to all the rules established in the Copyright Act and the special rules determined in these regulations. ARTICLE 62 No work, whether in manuscript or printed form, may be performed, sung or read in public without the prior authorisation given by the owner, even though it may have been previously performed, sung or read in some other threatre or hall. ARTICLE 63 The Governors, or in places where no Governor resides, the Mayors, shall order the immediate cancellation of any performance or reading of any literary or musical work | announced after the owner of the work or his representative communicate him that the company concerned has not been authorised. Cancellation shall proceed without the need of a request when the public authority knows that no permission has been granted. ARTICLE 64 The plan or plot of a dramatic or musical work, as well as its title, shall be the property of the person who has conceived or acquired the work. As a result, taking the whole or a part of the title, plot or text of a literary or musical work, manuscript or printed, to use it in another dramatic work shall be punishable as a fraudulent act. ARTICLE 65 No person may, without the consent of the owner, introduce into parodies, either in whole or in part, any exact part or any melody from the parodied work. ARTICLE 66 Every author shall keep the right to amend and re-cast his works, even after they have been transferred. Mere corrections shall not have any impact on the contract of sale that would have been agreed. However, if the re-casting introduces essential modifications, he shall therefore be entitled to receive one third of the royalties generated by the performance of the work in this re-cast form. |
Beyond this case, the re-cast of a dramatic work that has not entered the public domain is a fraudulent act. If the work had entered the public domain, the arranger (refundidor) or his represen- tative would receive the corresponding royalties. ARTICLE 67 Nobody shall, without the consent of the author, or in the case of a work that has been transferred, without the consent of the owner, re-arrange a dramatic work of an author, even to the extent of changing its title, the names of the characters and the setting in order to adapt it to a musical composition. If any such re-arrangement takes place abroad, the author of the original work shall, subject to any matter regulated by international treaties, be entitled to collect royalties for perfomances in Spain, even when the work is in a language different from that in which it was originally written. ARTICLE 68 Additionally the authorisation of author and the owner shall also be required to use the plot of a novel or any literary (non-dramatic) work and to adapt it to a dramatic work. ARTICLE 69 The author who transfers a dramatic wrok still keeps the right to supervise its faithful reproduction or performance, but without prejudice of the same right which the owner may also exercise in this respect. | ARTICLE 70 Whether or not an audience pays for admission, nobody can perform any literary or musical work, in whole or in part, in a public place, in any form other than that in which it was published but its author or its owner. ARTICLE 71 Purely instrumental and dance music performed in theatres or public places to which a charge in any form is made for admission, falls within the scope of art. 19 of the Copyright Act, and shall enjoy the benefits of the Copyright Act and these regulations. ARTICLE 72 Co-authors of a dramatic or musical work who cease to collaborate before the end of the work, or who agree not to publish or perform the work after it is finished, shall be entitled only to dispose the part that they have individually contributed, subject to an agreement to contrary. CHAPTER II. ARTICLE 71 Acceptance and Peformance of Dramatic and Musical Works ARTICLE 73 The company that accepts to read a new dramatic or musical work which has not been yet peformed in any theatre in Spain shall give a receipt to the person who submitted the work. |
ARTICLE 74 When a new dramatic or musical work has been submitted to the company responsible for a theatre or music hall designed for public spectacles, such company shall, whithin twenty days, communicate the author or the owner, or his representative, whether or not the work has been accepted for performance. If the work submitted is not accepted, the company shall return the work within the period mentioned in the preceding paragraph, without the need for an explanation, and it shall collect the corresponding receipt. ARTICLE 75 Authors and owners of dramatic works or their representatives shall always keep the right to claim the return of their literary or musical works at any time prior to the final acceptance by a company. ARTICLE 76 When a new ork has been accepted by a companu, the company and the owner shall reach an agreement by writing as to the time of performance, which shall be either a specific date or a slot in a calendar (schedule) and the arrangement shall be taken to be applicable for the time the company that has accepted the work is responsible for that theatre. If the company accepts a new work subject to amendments to be made by the author, this acceptance shall not be taken to be final until the company has accepted the amendments. | ARTICLE 77 The calendar shall be observed regarding the new works to which it has been made applicable. Works from the repertoire shall be considered to be outside its application and companies shall always reserve the right to perform them when they deem convenient to their interests. ARTICLE 78 Theatrical companies shall keep a register, in which they shall record the date of acceptance of each new work and the conditions agreed with the respective authors or owners. ARTICLE 79 Any company accepting a new work shall, at its own expnse, make the necessary copies for its study and performance, and shall return the original to the author before the rehearsals. The author or the owner shall check and and initialise one of the completed and numbered copies. Such copy shall taken to be the authentic one in case of legal proceedings. Beyond this case, and in accordance with articles 2, 7, and 21 of the Copyright Act, nobody shall be able to reproduce, copy, hire or sell a dramatic or musical work without the autorisation of the owner, even if the works in question have not been printed or performed in public. |
ARTICLE 80 The composer or the owner of a new musical work shall give the theatrical company a complete instrumental score that shall be returned to him after the end of the theatrical season, unless there is an agreement to the contrary. ARTICLE 81 The author or the owner of a new work which has been accepted is obliged to authorise the performance in the theatre which has accepted it, unless the theatrical season ends before work is produced or unless the company fails to fulfil its corresponding obligations. In those cases, the author or the owner may withdraw the work, without prejudice to any compensation involved and without the company being able to object it. ARTICLE 82 In the absence of an agreement to the contrary, or unless the author or the owner have been released from the obligations of the agreement with the first company, the author or the owner of a new work which has been accepted by a theatre shall not be able to have his work performed in any other theatre in the same locality during the theatrical season. ARTICLE 83 The theatrical company shall have the right to set the schedule, the dates and rehearsal times. | ARTICLE 84 The author shall always keep the right to select the actors to perform the work, and to direct the rehearsals with the stage director. He also has the right to be off stage during all performances of his work. ARTICLE 85 Nothwithstanding art. 86 of these regulations, posters and programmes of the performances shall advertise the works with their true titles,without additions or suppressions, and with the names of the authors or translators. Those who fail to comply with this requirement face a fine, which may be imposed by the Governor, or in places where no Governor resides, by the Mayor. Additionally the mentioned requirements shall be observed in the case of works which have entered the public domain and it shall not be possible to announce such works solely under generic titles such as “tragedy”, “drama”, “comedy”, “zarzuela”, “dramatic sketch”, “vaudeville”, etc. ARTICLE 86 The making of the poster, in relation to the new work, belongs to the author or authors. They may prohibit or insist upon the publication of their name before the first performance. |
ARTICLE 87 Companies may not change, add, or ommit parts of the text without the authorisation of the authors. ARTICLE 88 Unless otherwise provided, the company shall not be under obligation to use the customes or scenic effects beyond those in the possession of the theatre, provided they are not contrary to the distinctive and historical character of the dramatic work. ARTICLE 89 Unless a new work is absolutely hated by the the public after its first performance, companies are under the obligation of giving at least three consecutive performances of it. ARTICLE 90 Companies shall pay a compensation to the owners of dramatic or dramatico-musical works or their representatives if they refuse to perform the new work which has been accepted by them or if they have failed to do so within the time agreed except in the case of a work included in the schedule but there was no time for its performance during the theatrical season. This compensation shall be 250 pesetas for dramatic works in one act, 500 pesetas for works in two acts and 750 for works in three or more acts. | ARTICLE 91 If an owner withdrew a new work accepted during the theatrical season, failing to meet the stipulated obligations, shall also compensate the company and shall re-imburse the costs incurred by the theatrical companies in order to put it on stage, supported with the corresponding evidence. Theatrical companies and owners of dramatic works shall be subject to any liability resulting from failure to fulfil their respective contractual obligations. ARTICLE 92 The owner of a dramatic or musical work may withdraw it from the theatre in which it is performed when the company fails to pay the corresponding royalties at the day when it was due. If the work belongs to two or more owners, any of them may adopt that measure, subject to what it is stipulated in article 49 of the Copyright Act. ARTICLE 93 The author of a literary work that has been performed in public, and that prohibited its further performance solely because it offends his moral or political feelings shall previously compensate the owner if |
the work had been transferred, and to the co-authors or co-owners, if any. In the case of a musical work, the composer shall also keep the right to use his music in another work. ARTICULO 94 Any disagreement that may arise between co-owners of a dramatic or musical work regarding the conditions of acceptance or the way to be performed in any theatre or hall intended to be used for public spectacles shall be decided by majority vote of the owners if there were more than two. If there are no more than two co-owners, they shall nominate a panel of four writers or composers of music, and the governmental authority shall nominate a fifth member who shall preside as president. This panel shall decided in an amicable manner. When an owner fails to comply with the decision of the majority in the first instance, or with the decision of the panel in the second instance, the matter shall be decided by the courts. ARTICLE 95 Unforeseen circumstances in which the company may cancel the contract with the approval of the competent authority are the following: (1) plague, (2) earthquakes, (3) national mourning, (4) public disorder compelling suspension of performances, (5) the banning of a work by the authorities in the interests of public order or as the result of a judicial decision relating to the work. | Fire or destruction of the building shall also be considered an unavoidable circumstance justifying the cancellation of contracts. CHAPTER III Performance rights of dramatic and musical works ARTICLE 96 Performance rights of dramatic and musical works shall be taken as a deposit on behalf of the theatrical companies and such companies shall keep the royalties at the daily disposal of the owners of the works or their representatives. If the owners or their representtives have not yet fixed the copyright tariffs at the time of giving authorisation for the performance of the work, these shall be as follows: TARIFFS Original dramatic works in one act, 3 per cent. Original dramatic works in two acts 7 per cent. Original dramatic works in three or more acts, 10 per cent For the first three performances, double royalties shall be payable. Adaptations of old theatrical works, arrangements, imitations, and translations shall generate one half of the above royalties. ARTICLE 97 Rights in dramatico-musical works are the same as the rights in dramatic works, one half being in respect of the libretto |
and the other half in respect of the music. No differentiation shall be made between originals and translations. ARTICLE 98 Literary compositions of substantial length, whether in prose or verse, the reading of which is advertised in posters as an integral part of a performance other than a part of a memorial celebration, shall generate the same royalties as those produced by original dramatic works in one act. ARTICLE 99 Operas, oratorios and similar works of poetry in music by Spanish authors or by foreigners living in Spain shall produce the same royalties as original dramatic works, even when the libretto is translated or arranged. Such royalties shall be distributed in the following manner: two thirds to the author or owner of the music and one third to the author or owner of the libretto. ARTICLE 100 Musical works of purely instrumental music which have not entered the public domain shall produce the following royalties: for the performance of a major symphony or fantasia in three or more movements, three per cent; three per cent, for an original overture, one per cent; for a short original dance (“divertissement”) in one act, either Spanish or foreigner, one per cent. Unless a lump sum has been agreed, other classes of instrumental or vocal music performed at concerts, circuses or public dances, as well as | preludes, accompaniments to melodrama, and isolated songs shall, for the purpose of royalty payments, be assessed in relation to the preceding rates according to their length and artistic importance. ARTICLE 101 The performance of musical works at religious and military ceremonies, serenades and civil solemn acts where the public may attend gratis shall be excluded from the royalty payment but they cannot be performed without the prior authorisation of the owner and in the form in which they were published by the owner. The infringers shall be subjected to the penalties specified in the Penal Code, and according to article 25 of the Copyright Act, they shall pay the corresponding compensation. ARTICLE 102 The percentage to be received by owners of dramatic and musical works shall be assessed in relation to the total proceeds of each performance, taking into account the value of subscriptions and any increase in booking charges and issue of tickets but without considering any special concession the companies may give when they sell the tickets at a lower price than that announced to the public in general. A exception shall be made in relation to any reduction the company may grant to subscribers. |
ARTICLE 103 In lieu of a percentage, owners of dramatic or musical works shall be able to fix a specified sum as royalty payment in relation to each theatrical performance in those theatres that prefer this way of payment. ARTICLE 104 After a request of an interested party, provincial Governors or, in places where no Governor resides, the Mayor, shall, in addition to the provisions stipulated in article 49 of the Copyright law, order the deposit of the proceeds derived from the sale of tickets in order to pay the outstanding debt that the company may have in respect of copyright royalties, after having satisfied the royalties of the works performed on any particular night. ARTICLE 105 The author of a dramatic or musical work shall have the right to request, without charge, two of the best seats at each perfomance of his work. No more than two seats may be requested, even when the work has been written in collaboration by two or more authors. The day of the premiere he shall be entitled to a first class box with capacity to six persons or to six first class seats. | ARTICLE 106 All companies shall keep a book with numbered pages, each of which shall be marked with the seal of the Civil Governor, or that of the Mayor in places where no Governor resides. This book shall be entitled “Register of Tickets” (Libro de entradas) and it shall record the total proceeds from subscriptions and other receipts for each performance night. The book may be examined by the owner or his representative, at his convenience, whenever his works are being performed in theatres where the royalties are payable on a percentage basis. ARTICLE 107 Any error that may be found in this book mentioned in the preceding article and that may be prejudicial to the owner of literary or musical works in terms of copyright collection shall be taken to be an aggravating circumstance of fraud. ARTICLE 108 The company shall be obliged to produce a statement verified by the theatrical cashier setting out the total receipts, including subscritpions. Theatres which pay a fixed amount for each performance shall be excluded from this obligation. |
ARTICLE 109 The owners of dramatic or musical works, or their representatives, may also check daily the record of tickets and the counterfoils issued by theatres. Those theatres that pay a fixed sum for each performance shall be relieved from the obligation. If the author or owners deeem it necessary, they may stamp the tickets to secure their interests. ARTICLE 110 In the theatres in which the performance right is assessed on the basis of the percentage of the product of the tickets, the theatrical companies may give the unsold tickets away, communicating this to the owners of the works. In that event, the nominal value shall not taking into account for the payment of royalties. ARTICLE 111 The rights of the co-authors are the same whatever their part played in the conception, development or writing of the work, unless otherwise provided. The same shall apply to the co-authors of musical works in respect of their contribution to the composition. | ARTICLE 112 Authors or owners of a libretto and music of a new dramatico-musical work shall decide previously and before its acceptance in a theatre, whether the author of the music may freely print and record the lyrics of the music or he should follow the conditions required by the libretto. of the music may print or transfer it separately or together with the lyrics. ARTICLE 113 In respect of dramatic or musical works performed in public, the scenary and other accessories of scenic nature shall not give their authors any right to be considered collaborators. ARTICLE 114 Cafés and cafés-teatros are subject to the Copyright Act and to the police regulations governing such premises. ARTICLE 115 These premises shall also be subject to the payment of royalties that the owners of dramatic or musical works or their representatives may fix when issuing the preliminary authorisation requested. |
ARTICLE 116 Such companies cannot avoid the payment of royalties for the performance of works because the admission ticket is subsumed in the price of the drinks sold in the premises. ARTICLE 117 Choral societies, casinos, and amateur associations constituted in any form enabling pecuniary contri- butions for their subsistence to be collected, whether by periodic payments or a single fixed sum, shall be subject to the provisions stipulated above. When the activites of such entities take place in public theatres, they shall pay royalties in the similar manner as the way these theatres pay, and shall be subject to the regulations applicable to them. ARTICLE 118 Publishers or managers of dramatic or musical works, or their repre- sentatives , shall be taken to be authorised representatives of the works so far as concerns relations with theatrical companies and local authorities. In order to declare their capacity to act, it shall be enough to produce a nomination or declaration by the said owners. Such publishers or managers, as representatives of the owners, may authorise or not companies for the performance of works. The shall publicise copyright tariffs for the performance of works in each theatre. | They may request the competent authority to order the cancellation or the guarantee mentioned in art. 48 of the Copyright Act. They shall also be entitled to check that posters accurately state the titles of works and the names of authors, to inspect the number of tickets sold and the account books, to collect royalties due to owners of dramatic or musical works, not only from public theatres but also from café-theatres, choral societies, casinos and amateur societies constituted in any form but in which pecuniary monetary contribution mediates. The shall enjoy in theatres and music- halls the same privileges, advantages and rights granted to authors and owners where where they reside but they shall only be entitled to one single free first-class seat, even when two or more works from their repertoire are performed on the same night. Finally, they shall insist upon precise compliance with the Copyright Act and the Theatrical Regulations. ARTICLE 119 Civil Governors, and in places where there is no Civil Governor, the Mayor shall decide all issues arising from the application of these regulations between companies organising public spectacles and authors, actors, artists and their employees. Effect shall be given to these decisions without prejudice to future claims. Madrid, 3 September 1880.- Approved by HM.- Lasala. |