Copyright law in Hong Kong to a great extent follows the English model. The Basic Law of Hong Kong, its constitutional document, guarantees a high degree of autonomy and continuation of laws previously in force after its unification with Mainland China. Hong Kong therefore continues to maintain a separate intellectual property regime from Mainland China.
Copyright in Hong Kong under the Copyright Ordinance (Cap 528) is broken down into:
literary, dramatic and musical works
artistic works
sound recordings
films
broadcasts
cable programmes
typographical arrangement of published editions
Copyright comes into existence at the same time as the creation: there is no formality of registration in Hong Kong.
The author of the work is deemed to be the person who creates the work (with exceptions for commissioned works and employee works). Subject to a few exceptions, copyright expires 50 years after the death of the author.
The Hong Kong legislation recognises moral rights ("droit d'auteur").
Controversial changes criminalising the copying of materials in the course of trade were introduced in 2000: in so far as they affect printed matter, these were quickly suspended following an outcry from educational groups and consumer groups. The suspension, provided in the Copyright (Suspension of Amendments) Ordinance 2001, will expire on July 31, 2004. Hong Kong is currently unique in the common law world for treating copying infringing materials differently between printed and non-printed materials.
Copyright laws are administered by the Intellectual Property Department of the Hong Kong Government.
The trade mark law of HongKong is based on the Trade Marks Ordinance Cap.
The superceded law and the current law share many similarities with the relevant legislation in the United Kingdom, a similarity which is also facilitated by TRIPs.
The standard total cost for using the services of a trademark attorney to handle the filing of an application in one class is HK $4,300 (the professional component of this fee is recommended by the HongKongLaw Society).
The HongKong Government is currently engaged in a public consultation process intended to lead to changes in the mechanism for choosing the Chief Executive and forming the Legislative Council and move toward the "ultimate aim" of universal suffrage as prescribed by the Basic Law.
HongKong is endeavoring to improve its attractiveness as a commercial and trading center, especially after China's entry into the WTO, and continues to refine its financial architecture.
HongKong's foreign relations and defense are the responsibility of China.
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