The Need for Public Interest Defence in Copyright Law During the Information Technology Era

Abstract

In the age of information technology, copyright law contends with a new challenge. Owing to this, various challenges of regulating copyright infringement on the Internet need to be tackled. Copyright law has its intent in the public interest. Nevertheless, it should not forfeit the rights of the copyright owner. Therefore, a balance must be maintained in preserving copyright owners ' rights while, at the same time, the work can be used by the public. This is so as the public interest in Malaysia is not rendered as a special provision pertaining to entitlements under the Copyright Act 1987. Still, certain legal provisions in the Copyright Act 1987 include the term of public interest. In arguing the need to offer public interest in copyright law especially in the era of information technology, this article discusses the theory of public interest and the theory of information technology. Via library research, this article uses the legal research method. This article concludes that while there is no specific provision as regards the public interest in Copyright Act 1987, it does not in itself oppose Article 8 of the TRIPS Agreement because the public interest is being impliedly considered in the defense of copyright. Therefore, there is no need to create specific provisions as the current defenses of copyright are appropriate and the court may decide whether the use of such remedies is allowed or not.