Register proof of priority with copyright

Another important reason why you should register your copyright despite the lack of necessity is the so-called proof of priority. Finally, copyright priority has a key function. This means that one can prove without any gaps that one was the first to create a photograph as a pure photograph or as a photograph. The priority can be proven by providing evidence of a comprehensible date.

However, this proof only becomes incontestable when it has been officially certified or registered by a notary or official. You can register copyright at the district court or at the notary. After this copyright registration, you then have legally watertight proof of your copyright. The registration is then the official confirmation of the copyright that you have on your image.

A copyright registration then remains valid not only for life, but for another 70 years after the photographer’s death. The court is required by law to keep the registration document incontestable and complete. Also, if you change or update the work, you should register a new copyright for your photo. Only then is the new work really protected.

Register copyright at the notary

When registering the copyright, make a copy of your image and give the original or the original file to the notary. In return, you will receive a certificate proving your authorship. In a legal dispute, you can then use the notarized document to provide proof of priority in your favor without any doubt and in an uncomplicated manner.

Last but not least, registering the copyright is also worthwhile because the notification function acts as a deterrent and experience has shown that images marked with copyright are not copied that often. The costs for a copyright registration are based on the fee schedule of the notary or the district court.

Furthermore, there are now service providers who have specialized in registering copyrights. Here you can have individual photos protected for a certain price per image or even book a flat rate for a fixed monthly amount. If you want to register the copyright of one of your images, LAPIXA will be happy to take care of the entire process for you. Feel free to write to us via our website or send us an email.

Copyright is not the same as copyright

While copyright protects the author of a photograph or a photographic work, copyright gives its owner the right to use a work economically (“right to copy”). Therefore, the relationship between the creator and the copyright holder is not automatic.

For example, if the photographer has transferred the commercial exploitation rights to a company via a Creative Commons license, the company can then register a copyright for the photo in question. LAPIXA enforces all these rights for you. You concentrate entirely on your creative work and leave the tracking down of illegal copies of your works to LAPIXA with its international network of lawyers.

LAPIXA helps you to get your rights quickly and conveniently if your photos are modified or redistributed online without your consent. We enforce your image rights. Visit lapixa.de/fotografen for more information about our service for professional photographers.