Mash‐Up Songs: Are There Any Exceptions to the Exclusive Rights in the Light of the Jordanian Copyright Protection and Related Rights Law?

Abstract

This article focuses on the phenomenon of mash‐up songs. The paper highlights the exclusive rights of authors and audio recordings producers under the Jordanian Copyright Protection and Related Rights Law (No. 22 of 1992) and its latest amendments in 2014. I will refer to UK, US, Australian and Canadian laws and case laws because there is no judicial precedent in Jordan relating to mash‐up songs, and Jordan as a developing country shall benefit from the experience of other jurisdictions, in this field.One of the exceptions and limitations to exclusive rights, that is, fair use defence was developed in England in the eighteenth century and the United States in the nineteenth century in Folsom v Marsh case. Moreover, the Canadian Copyright Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C‐42) has recently added a “mash‐up exception”, therefore, it would be interesting to refer in brief, to the above exception. I will distinguish between the exclusive rights of authors and audio recordings producers that are applicable to mash‐ups. My aim in this paper is to determine whether there are any exceptions and limitations to these exclusive rights. This article concludes by recommending the inclusion of mash‐up exceptions to the Jordanian law.