WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) Law and Legal Definition
WIPO Copyright Treaty (“WCT”) is a special agreement under the Berne Convention. It was concluded at Geneva Switzerland, on December 20, 1996. The U.S. ratified the WCT on September 14, 1999, and the treaty came into force on March 6, 2002.
The Treaty mentions two subject matters to be protected by copyright:
(i) computer programs, whatever may be the mode or form of their expression, and
(ii) compilations of data or other material - databases, in any form, which by reason of the selection or arrangement of their contents constitute intellectual creations.
The Treaty also deals with three rights of authors:
(i) the right of distribution,
(ii) the right of rental, and
(iii) the right of communication to the public.
