RSA Limited versus Hanspaul Automechs Limited; Commercial Case No 160 of 2014: High Court of Tanzania (Commercial Division) at Dar es Salaam(Unreported).
- Intellectual Property
- Copyright – what works are protected by copyright?
- Copyright – How one can prove he is the original owner and that copyright subsists?
- Copyright – infringement of copyright – whether it can be tested by visual appearance.
Held:-
(i) For a work to be protected by copy right, under section 5 of the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act, Cap 218 (R.E. 2002), the plaintiff has to prove that the work is original and it belongs to him. That means, it has to be original in the real sense, and the plaintiff has to be a creator in the real sense.
(ii) A written notice or any other form of notice like a sign ‘on the work itself stating (i) the name of the original owner (2) stating that, the copy right exists on the work and (3) stating restriction of the copyright and the works must be proved in order to satisfy the requirements of original ownership and copy right.