The Centre for Research in Digital Education is hosting a seminar with Dr Smita Kheria, School of Law, University of Edinburgh, on Tuesday 21 November at noon. All are welcome – please sign up at the link below.
Abstract
Copyright, as a key issue that concerns both the creative industries and individual creative practitioners alike, has increasingly been subjected to public debate. The transition from analogue to digital media has been both promising and problematic. On the one hand, there are new opportunities for the production, dissemination, and consumption of creative output which creators may be unable to utilize, because of the barriers posed by copyright restrictions. On the other, successful exploitation of copyright faces challenges and has led to concerns about the ability of creators to earn a living and sustain their creative activities.
In this context, it is then useful to ask: what is the role of copyright in the day to day practice of creative practitioners, and how is it changing? Does copyright matter to creators today? Is it relevant to their everyday lives and valuable to them?
With an emphasis on artists’ relationship with copyright, this talk will present thematic findings from new empirical research with creative practitioners. In particular, it will focus on three themes: a) the role of copyright as a source of revenue (the ability to exploit rights for monetary return) in creative lives b) the importance of protection for personal non-monetary interests and the possible role played by copyright in protecting reputational concerns and, c) the complexity of creators’ relationships with copyright.
Biography
Smita is a Lecturer in Intellectual Property Law in Edinburgh Law School. She combines legal expertise in copyright and related rights with socio-legal research on the role of intellectual property law in the real world. She has been involved in several research projects that have examined how copyright intersects with the everyday lives and creative practices of digital artists, online creative communities, arts and humanities researchers, and professional creators and performers.