Section 52 of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA) limits to 25 years the duration of copyright in artistic works that have been exploited with the copyright owner’s consent by making, using an industrial process, articles which amount to copies of the work.

An article is considered to have been made using an industrial process where more than 50 articles are made, or where the article consists of goods which are not hand-made and are manufactured in lengths or pieces (Article 2, Copyright (Industrial Process and Excluded Articles) (No 2) Order 1989 (SI 1989/1070)) (Copyright Order)). However, articles considered to be of a "primarily literary or artistic character" can be excluded from the operation of section 52 by order of the Secretary of State (section 52(4), CDPA). Pursuant to this, the Copyright Order excludes various articles from the operation of section 52, including works of sculpture and printed matter such as book jackets or calendars.

Professor Hargreaves' Review of Intellectual Property and Growth published in May 2011 recommended, among other things, a range of new copyright exceptions (see Legal update, Hargreaves review of intellectual property published). The government's response to the review in August 2011 included a commitment to bringing forward proposals for a substantial opening up of the UK's copyright-exceptions regime (see Legal update, Government response to Hargreaves review of intellectual property published). In December 2011, the government consulted on the changes it proposes to make to copyright law in order to implement the review's recommendations, including revisions to the UK's current copyright exceptions (see Legal update, IPO launches consultation on proposals to modernise copyright system).

First, the Bill repeals section 52 of the CDPA (clause 55). As a result, the Copyright Order will cease to have effect. Designers will benefit from the repeal because artistic works covered by the section will enjoy copyright protection for the period of a creator's life plus 70 years.

The IPO has indicated that this proposal is separate from the government's current review of copyright and design law following the Hargreaves Review.

The Bill also enables the copyright exceptions set out in Chapter 3 of Part 1 to the CDPA to be amended by secondary legislation with the addition of a new section 28ZA of the CDPA (clause 56).

Similarly, the Bill also permits the exceptions to rights in performances set out in section 189 of, and Schedule 2 to, the CDPA to be amended by secondary legislation (clause 56). This will be achieved with the addition of a new section 189A of the CDPA.

This clause is significant because it permits the amendment of the exceptions through secondary legislation rather than EU law thereby avoiding a need to amend the level of criminal penalties as set out in current copyright legislation.