Act 2 Scene 3 : Copyrights

Copyright law is not such an easy area to navigate for the resurrected! Copyright refers to the legal ownership of intellectual property (IP), reserving the right to reproduce or recreate this property exclusively for the creators or anyone they permit access to (Investopedia, 2020). Shakespeare and his works existed long before the existence of copyright law (Spanier, 2009) and so should a scenario arise in which he were resurrected, we would have to engage the debate as to whether he could be entitled to copyright his work and more than that, recoup royalties for hundreds of years of productions, performances and public referrals to his works.

Shakespeares works have been performed over 25,000 times across over 100 languages and endless renditions since 1959 - 350 years after his death (Guardian, 2016). His works have been mired, studied and scrutinised for centuries. As a result of the lack of legal grounds to reserve the rights to ones intellectual property in the 17th century, Shakespeare's works exist in the public domain, meaning they are free for all to use without the need to pay royalties or fees for use of the property (Mason, n.d.). Now though, our aged Shakespeare has awoken in this world in which intellectual property and copyright laws has become very much ingrained within the structure of creativity. Maintaining control of an idea is locked into the creative process. However, under current laws, after the death of the owner of IP, copyright law sheds the legal case within generally 50-70 years depending on the country (with exceptions that range from 25-100 years) and all IP of the victim is launched into the public domain. Clearly the case for Shakespeare owning rights to his property would long have expired by the time we reach the 20th century when productions of his works became vastly more frequent. Therefore, with the case of his awakening, his rights to royalties would quickly be dismissed to any notable degree.

However, his plays being largely observed as his own intellectual property could justify the legal right to reserve his plays for royalties in the aftermath of his awakening. It could be in his interest to reserve the rights for his play given the sheer volume of financing that would provide in his impoverished ways. According to Blakeley (2005), he could expect to earn up to $15 million a year. However, there is the case that he is frequently accused of being an inveterate plagiarist (JDSupra, 2016), and while it would be hard to prove the theory given the lack of reliable witnesses, reserving the rights to his works would certainly be an action that could stain his reputation in this new highly connected society. And this in is where the presence of sophisticated information systems could stand to crush wise old Shakespeare. 

Media Outcry

So used we have become to the availability of Shakespeare's works, so long we have come to study, appreciate, and replicate his structures / themes that should we lose them, we could see a fierce reaction. The loss of easy access and reference to his works would inevitably result in a media outcry of support for the free production of his plays. Standing in his way is the vast communicative beast of a social media sandstorm. This is what faces Shakespeare.

Social media has served to be the definitive advancement in communication in the 21st century. Our connectivity is closer than ever before. This has afforded a great rise in strong movements and political risings that have both served the benefit and ruination of systems in our society. This connected mass can bring about great change in society but can also be directed harshly to swiftly destroy its targets. Many a case has arisen which have destroyed careers of those who find themselves victims of this mob. Shakespeare should be well advised to support his actions with a strong media team, who can brief him of the potholes and general public calamities to be avoided in the social media space. He can use this medium to instill his presence and work to leverage off the notoriety which has surrounded him in his death as perhaps the most famous writer of all time, or at the very least, most recognisable by name. He can begin to mould a brand around him and bring about a social media following that could launch him into stardom. Social media has served individuals and businesses in generating a brand which engages followers and grows the image of the individual or business (Cartwright, Davies and Archer-Brown, 2021). However, this medium also has destructive capabilities should he try to disrupt the free use of his previous works. It does not take a legal precedent or trial verdict to fall victim to the social media mob and so he must be very careful with how he walks the thread of the topic of copyright, royalties and intellectual property. He should not wish to experience the brutality of the 'cancel'!

By Hugo Bolger

Up Next: Act 3 Prologue: Extending the Brief

Interesting Reads:

What’s in a number? William Shakespeare’s legacy analysed - Guardian

Writing Plays - https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/discover/shakespeares-world/writing-plays/

References

Blakeley, K., 2005. [online] Forbes.com. Available at: <https://www.forbes.com/consent/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/2005/10/26/shakespeare-william-earnings_deadceleb05_cz_kb_1027shakespeare.html> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

Cartwright, S., Davies, I. and Archer-Brown, C., 2021. Managing relationships on social media in business-to-business organisations. Journal of Business Research, 125, pp.120-134.

Investopedia, 2020. Copyright Definition. [online] Investopedia. Available at: <https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/copyright.asp> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

Kluft, D., Reed, N., Jarvis, J., Swain, P., Sullivan, P., Patel, M., Kinsley, N. and Maerker, J., 2016. Shakespeare and Copyright: 5 Things You Should Know | Trademark and Copyright Law. [online] Trademark and Copyright Law. Available at: <https://www.trademarkandcopyrightlawblog.com/2016/04/shakespeare-and-copyright-5-things-you-should-know/> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

JDSupra, 2016. Shakespeare and Copyright: 5 Things You Should Know | JD Supra. [online] JD Supra. Available at: <https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/shakespeare-and-copyright-5-things-you-99749/> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

Mason, C., n.d. What is Public Domain and how does it apply to the theatre? A guide for drama teachers.. [online] The Theatrefolk Blog. Available at: <https://www.theatrefolk.com/blog/public-domain-mean-guide-drama-teachers/> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

Spanier, K., 2009. Cinema Law: What Is In the Public Domain? - MovieMaker Magazine. [online] MovieMaker Magazine. Available at: <https://www.moviemaker.com/literature-in-the-public-domain-shakespeare/#:~:text=The%20works%20of%20William%20Shakespeare,or%20paying%20for%20the%20use.> [Accessed 14 February 2022].

Yeung, P., Gutierrez, P., Swann, G. and Levett, C., 2016. What’s in a number? William Shakespeare’s legacy analysed. [online] Guardian. Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/culture/ng-interactive/2016/apr/22/william-shakespeares-legacy-analysed#:~:text=There%20is%20always%20a%20performance,to%20the%20World%20Shakespeare%20Bibliography.> [Accessed 14 February 2022].