If you have a website, you should then be aware to what extent you own the IP legal rights over your website.
(a) You are most likely to have an inherent ownership right over any of the following:
- Written material if created by you or legally acquired;
- Graphics or databases if created by you or legally acquired;
- Photographs taken by you, provided that they do not contain the image of third parties in which case you should seek their consent;
- Music and videos, if you are the owner of such artistic work (or you legally acquired them) provided that they do not contain the unauthorized image of third parties or unauthorized use of other artistic works owned by third parties.
- Business names, logos, product names, domain names etc. which are yours, either through the effect of their creation and/or registration or as a result of their acquisition from their legal owners.
(b) However, in relation to any of the below category, it is unlikely that you will have the ownership right; you may, nonetheless, have a right of use (under a license or other similar form of authorization or otherwise as an effect of law):
- Domain name: it is unlikely that you will own the domain name; however you may be assigned the right of use over the respective domain name once you have required and paid for its reservation;
- Software: it is unlikely that you will own the software, unless it was developed at your request under a work-for-hire agreement;
- Web server, web server platform, algorithms, search engines or other technical tools which make the website functional: it is unlikely that you will have the ownership rights over any of these, unless you have acquired such rights under a work-for-hire agreement;
- Any content of your website representing third parties’ literary or artistic works for which you have received legal consent of use;
- Works which are in the public domain and can be freely used.
(c) You should not publish on your website:
- IP rights owned by third parties, such as trademarks, logos, copyright;
- Literary or artistic work belonging to third parties and in relation to which copyright is still in place (copyright is generally recognized by law for a period which lasts up to 50 to 70 years after the death of the author);
- Confidential information, trade secrets or use of certain elements which belong to or which are related to a person and for which the legal consent has not been obtained – for example, a picture taken to somebody cannot be published without the consent of the respective person.
