Copyright is a legal term describing rights given to the creators of literary and artistic works.

The kinds of works covered by copyright include: literary works such as novels, poems, plays, reference works, newspapers and computer programs; databases; films, musical compositions, and choreography; artistic works such as paintings, drawings, photographs and sculpture; architecture; and advertisements, maps and technical drawings. Copyright exists automatically in new works of these types, so there is no requirement to register your work in order to benefit from copyright protection.