C2026-01 Payment of fees for use of copyright material
NSW agencies are responsible for managing their copyright obligations and paying copyright licence fees to copyright holders directly where required.
Issued: by Secretary, The Cabinet Office
Key information
- Status
- Active
- Type
- The Cabinet Office Circular
- Identifier
- C2026-01
- Compliance
- Mandatory
- Created
- Updated
Who needs to know and/or comply with this?
- Advisory Entities (including Boards and Committees)
- Departments
- Executive agencies related to Departments
- Separate agencies
- Statutory Authorities/Bodies
About
NSW agencies must pay fees to copyright holders for government use of copyright material. NSW agencies are responsible for managing their copyright obligations and paying copyright licence fees to copyright holders directly where required. NSW agencies may be covered by whole-of-government copyright collecting society agreements under which the NSW Government, through the Department of Communities and Justice, is required to make standard annual payments (known as equitable remuneration).
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) – see Agreements with the Copyright Agency and Screenrights below.
Agreements with the 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: The 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 agreements require the payment of equitable remuneration to the Copyright Agency and Screenrights (for distribution to copyright holders) for certain government uses of copyright material. The Department of Communities and Justice manages annual payment to the collecting societies as a single central invoice under these agreements, on behalf of in-scope NSW agencies (participating agencies). This excludes State Owned Corporations and educational institutions, and for the Screenrights agreement, any agency that has opted out by notice to the Department of Communities and Justice legal team. Any ‘Bulk Copying Agencies’ under the Screenrights agreements (see below) are liable to pay annual fees to Screenrights when invoiced to their agency or as otherwise advised by the Department of Communities and Justice legal team.
Surveys: Participating agencies are required to complete sampling surveys when requested from time to time, to ensure accurate data is received in respect of the volume of government copying and determine fair remuneration rates.
Contact officer: Each agency must appoint and advise the Department of Communities and Justice legal team of a copyright contact officer who is responsible for matters concerning the agreements on behalf of the agency.
Bulk Copying Agencies: The NSW Government has time sensitive notification and reporting obligations in relation to bulk copying activities. Any agency that proposes to copy on average 20 copies with a total duration of over 100 minutes of broadcast or audiovisual material inhouse per week (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 Government Media Monitoring Services arrangements below), whether for its own purposes or for provision to other agencies, must promptly notify the Department of Communities and Justice legal team.
Agencies must also conduct checks annually each May to ascertain whether they are undertaking such activities and notify the outcome of such checks to the Department of Communities and Justice legal team where bulk copying is identified. 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 Government Media Monitoring Services arrangements below.
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 collecting 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.
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, obtaining required copyright licences and paying any associated copyright fees for use of music.
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).
Use of copyright material for educational purposes
The 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 relevant copyright owners.
Further information
Whole-of-government copyright agreements and contact email for the Department of Communities and Justice legal team: visit the ‘Whole of Government copyright agreements with collecting societies’ pages on the Department of Communities and Justice website https://dcj.nsw.gov.au/legal-and-justice/laws-and-legislation/legal-assistance-and-applications/crown-copyright-information/government-copyright-agreements.html.
Educational copying: visit the National Copyright Unit’s smartcopying website www.smartcopying.edu.au.