In general terms, you will not need permission in order to use the same song title as someone else, unless the title is also a “substantial part” of the lyrics. However, if the person or band has established a reputation in connection with the song title, they may be able to prevent others from using the title in a way which causes confusion (for example, by relying on the law of passing off or fair trading laws), or to register the title as a trade mark.
Copyright protection is free and happens automatically. There is no registration system in Australia and no procedures that you have to follow before your material is protected.
Therefore there is no need to post material you have created to yourself, as this does not establish or protect your copyright.
If you think your copyright has been infringed, you will usually need advice from a lawyer about your chances of success in a legal action and what steps you should take. You need to be able to prove that the other work is the same as, or reproduces a “substantial part”, of your music. You also need to be able to show that the similarity results from actual copying of your music (not just coincidence). For more information, see our information sheet Infringement: what can I do?
If a person arranges a piece of music you have written, they will generally own the copyright in the arrangement, even though you will retain copyright in your original. However, the arranger will not generally be able to use the arrangement without your permission, because in doing so they will be using your tune. You will usually be able to use the arrangement for the purposes for which you commissioned it.
To avoid complications and disputes arising in this situation, it’s a good idea for you to reach an agreement (preferably in writing) about ownership of copyright before the work is done. You could, for example, require the arranger or transcriber to assign you any copyright in the work he or she creates. Alternatively, that person could license you to use his or her copyright for certain purposes.
The answer to this type of question will depend on all the facts.
If the writers or co-writers of a song come into rehearsals with a song already completely written, and the additional words are added at that stage, the ex-singer may have a claim to be a co-writer of the lyrics containing those additional words. However, the band could decide to drop the ex-singer’s contribution, and therefore not use the version over which the singer might have a co-writer claim.
However, if a band creates material co-operatively, or if a number of suggestions are incorporated into a song (for example, during rehearsal), it may be that all the contributing band members have a claim to be writers or co-writers of the entire song. In such a case, it may not be possible merely to remove words or change the song a little so as to deny someone a co-writer credit.
In practice, it will often be really hard to work out whether or not a band member who has contributed to a song is a co-writer. This is why it is best for a band to have a clear written agreement which deals with issues such as how copyright will be dealt with and who is entitled to copyright monies generated from material played by the band.
Copyright in a piece of music is usually first owned by its “author”. The “author” is usually the person who first records the music in some way – for example, writes it down or records it (for example, on tape or CD).
However, a person who merely writes out music that you play to them, or who writes out music from a recording, is unlikely to be an “author” in this sense. Similarly, a person such as an audio engineer who merely records a song will not be the owner of copyright in the words or music (although, depending on all the circumstances, they may own copyright in that particular recording).