Disciplines

Economic rights under the Law of 10 June 1999 on copyright and related rights: the author has the exclusive right to authorise the following acts:

• Reproduction of the work
• Translation of the work
• Adaptation, arrangement or any other transformation of the work
• Distribution of the original or a copy to the public by sale, rental, lending or any other form of transfer of ownership or possession
• Public display of the original or a copy
• Public performance or execution of the work
• Broadcasting of the work
• Cable retransmission or rebroadcast of the work (mandatory rights).
• Any other public communication of the work.

All economic rights that are not mandatory for collective management are optional to entrust to SDADV. As an SDADV member, you can choose which rights you want the society to manage on your behalf. This choice is made in the membership admission document by selecting the applicable rights categories.

As an SDADV member, you can choose which rights you want to entrust to the society for management. This choice is made in the membership admission document by selecting the applicable rights categories.

You can select the rights categories at the time of admission and modify them at any time during the term of the management mandate (your contract with SDADV).

Revocation or termination must be made by written notice to SDADV with six months’ prior notice, and will take effect at the end of the financial year corresponding to the date on which the six-month notice period expires.

Moral rights are generally personal, non-transferable, and non-waivable, without prejudice to exceptions provided by some laws. Under Andorran copyright and related rights law (1999), moral rights primarily include the right of attribution (paternity) and the right to integrity of the relevant work or performance. Other countries may also recognise additional moral rights, such as the right to decide on first publication/disclosure of a work, or the right to access the unique copy of a work.

Copyright allows artists to decide how their works are used and to receive the corresponding remuneration. SDADV facilitates this management, whether for reproduction and performance rights, participation rights, or collective rights.

Copyright and related rights arise automatically at the moment a work is created or a performance is made. There is no need to register or publish it: a work is protected from the moment it exists, even if it has not been made public.

But… how can you ensure these rights are respected and properly managed?

Through a collective management organisation like SDADV, which:

• ensures that the use of your works or performances is authorised;
• manages rights nationally and internationally;
• collects and distributes the economic compensation you are entitled to;
• provides guidance and support throughout your career.

In short: legal protection is automatic, but the effective management and enforcement of your rights requires a specialised entity.

An author is a person who created a work—for example, a writer, composer, lyricist, film director, screenwriter, photographer, illustrator, etc. An author is generally a natural person. However, applicable legislation allows legal persons to be considered authors in specific cases. The author’s age is irrelevant: a minor can also be an author and be protected by copyright.

If two or more people create a work together, it is a collaborative work. Copyright in a collaborative work arises jointly for the authors, and the permission of all of them is required to use the work.

By contrast, collective works are created on the initiative and under the coordination of a natural or legal person who edits and publishes the work under their name. They are made up of contributions from different authors whose personal contributions merge into a single, autonomous creation, conceived so that it is not possible to attribute separately to any one of them a right over the whole. Unless otherwise agreed, rights in a collective work belong to the person who edits and publishes it under their name. As an author, you may assign all or part of your rights to another person, for example a publisher, a producer, or even a company. The assignee becomes the rights holder of the rights that have been assigned.

The author has two types of rights over their work:

Moral rights

• Decide whether the work is disclosed and in what form.
• Be recognised as the author.
• Prevent modifications that alter the work.

Exploitation rights (economic rights)

• Authorise or prohibit the reproduction, distribution, communication to the public, or transformation of the work.
• Decide whether copies are made, whether it is translated, or adapted to another format.

In short: to use an author’s work, you need their permission, whether in the original or a modified form. If the work is collaborative, the consent of all authors is required.

Holders of related rights have the right to:

• authorise or prohibit the reproduction, distribution, and public communication of their performances or productions;
• receive remuneration for commercial uses (for example, on broadcasters, digital platforms, or public shows);
• protect the integrity of their performances against unauthorised uses or modifications.

These rights are independent of copyright but complementary, ensuring that professionals who contribute to the dissemination of works also receive fair compensation. They allow rights holders to control and be compensated for the use of their performances, productions, or broadcasts.