1. NSW agencies and copyright licence fees

   • NSW agencies must agree terms with copyright holders for government use of copyright works and audiovisual material, which usually includes making payments to copyright holders. This obligation is set out in the special Crown provisions in Part VII of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) (the Copyright Act).

   • Under the NSW Government Intellectual Property Framework (currently issued under C2021-11) (IP Framework), NSW Agencies are responsible for ensuring that they comply with copyright laws.

   • Agencies may access certain copyright material for internal uses under whole of government copyright agreements (rather than paying the relevant copyright holders individually). Agencies may be required to make standard annual payments (by way of equitable remuneration) under these whole of government agreements, which are also known as collecting society agreements – see section 2 below.

2. Copyright Agency and Screenrights

   • The Copyright Agency and Screenrights are declared collecting societies under s 153F of the Copyright Act for the purposes of Division 2 of Part VII of the Copyright Act. The Copyright Agency and Screenrights therefore represent copyright owners for the purposes of government copying of text, images, broadcasts and audiovisual material made available online by the copyright holder.

   • The State of New South Wales, acting through the Department of Communities and Justice, has entered into whole of government copyright agreements with the Copyright Agency and Screenrights under s 183A of the Copyright Act.

   • Coverage and scope: These agreements cover certain internal government uses of certain copyright material within scope and do not cover any external uses or publication of such material by agencies.

   • Fees: The two collecting society agreements require the payment of equitable remuneration to Copyright Agency and Screenrights (for distribution to copyright holders) for certain government uses of copyright material. NSW agencies covered by these agreements (participating agencies) (which excludes State Owned Corporations and educational institutions) are liable to pay annual fees to the collecting societies when invoiced to their agency, unless otherwise advised by the Department of Communities and Justice legal team.

   • Surveys: To ensure accurate data is received in respect of the volume of government copying, in order to determine fair remuneration rates, participating agencies are required to complete sampling surveys when requested from time to time.

   • Contact officer: Each agency must appoint and advise to the Department of Communities and Justice legal team, a copyright contact officer who is responsible for matters concerning these whole of government agreements on behalf of the agency.

   • Bulk Copying Agencies: Any agency which proposes to routinely copy broadcast or audiovisual material inhouse (or by authorising a third party to do so for the agency, noting that this does not include copies of material obtained by an agency pursuant to the State’s whole of government media monitoring services agreement: see section 5), whether for its own purposes or for provision to other agencies, must promptly notify the Department of Communities and Justice legal team. If so directed, the agency may be required to notify Screenrights and to pay additional copyright fees (as a Bulk Copying Agency, for example) and participate in annual surveys of copying. See also, section 5 below.

3. Dealings with the declared collecting societies

   • An agency must notify the Department of Communities and Justice legal team if:

     • contemplating entering into an independent arrangement with a declared copyright society for government copying; or

     • contemplating authorising a third party to copy material on behalf of the agency under s 183 of the Copyright Act; or

     • a collecting society contacts the agency directly raising any concern with respect to implementation or compliance with a copyright agreement.

   • Agencies must pay any valid invoices issued to them under a collecting society agreement promptly.

4. Music licensing

   • As of 1 July 2023, the State no longer has a whole of government agreement with a copyright collecting society in respect of music usage.

   • Agencies are responsible for determining their own music copyright licensing needs and obtaining required copyright licences, and paying any associated copyright fees, for use of music.

5. Government Media Monitoring Services arrangements

   • Government media monitoring services arrangements are overseen by the Premier’s Department.

   • Refer to C2021-10 Government Media Monitoring (or any replacement circular on media monitoring issued from time to time).

6. Use of copyright material for educational purposes

   • Use of copyright material by NSW government educational institutions is not covered under the government copying provisions of the Copyright Act and is separately managed through the National Copyright Unit in the Department of Education.

   • Where a registered training organisation (RTO) operates within a NSW government agency, the RTO should consider its educational copyright licensing needs and where necessary, obtain a licence from the Copyright Agency, Screenrights or otherwise from copyright owners.

7. Further information

   • Whole of government copyright agreements and contact email for DCJ Legal: visit the Department of Communities and Justice website “Crown Copyright” information pages.

   • Educational copying: visit the National Copyright Unit’s smartcopying website www.smartcopying.edu.au.

Kate Boyd PSM
Acting Secretary