Spec & Goals 3 min
AQA Spec 3.8.1 — Legislation: the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
By the end of this lesson you can:
- State what the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 protects.
- Explain what counts as infringement (piracy).
- Apply the Act to software, music, images and text.
Warm-Up 5 min
The third UK law in this unit protects people's creative work — software, music, films, images and writing — from being copied or used without permission.
Quick starter
You download a film from an unofficial site for free instead of paying to stream it. Who is harmed?
Reveal the idea
The creators and the company that made it lose income. This is copyright infringement (piracy) — illegal under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act.
Key Concept — protecting creative work 14 min
The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 gives the creator of an original work the legal right to control how it is copied, shared and used. It applies automatically — no need to register.
What it protects, and what infringes it
| Protected work | Infringement (illegal) example |
|---|---|
| Software | Copying or sharing paid software; using one licence on many machines. |
| Music & films | Downloading or streaming from unofficial "pirate" sites. |
| Images & text | Using a photo or article on your site without permission. |
Using protected work legally
- Buy a licence or get the owner's permission.
- Use work the owner has freely released (e.g. Creative Commons, royalty-free, open source).
- Create your own original work.
Worked Example — legal or not? 12 min
Problem: Decide whether each use breaks the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act.
| Use | Legal? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Priya buys one copy of a game and installs it on the family's five PCs. | No | The licence usually covers one device; copying breaches copyright. |
| Hafiz uses a Creative Commons photo, crediting the maker as asked. | Yes | The owner released it for such use under the licence terms. |
| A shop plays music downloaded from a pirate site in store. | No | The music was obtained and used without a licence. |
| A student writes and shares their own original program. | Yes | It is their own work; they hold the copyright. |
Try It Yourself 12 min
Goal: State what the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act protects.
Goal: Give three examples of copyright infringement involving digital media.
Goal: Explain two legal ways to use an image you found online on your own website.
📝 Exam Practice 10 min
State which law protects a programmer's rights over software they have written.
Mark scheme
- The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (1).
Describe what is meant by copyright infringement.
Mark scheme
- Copying / distributing / using someone's protected work (1).
- Without the owner's permission or a licence (1).
A company buys one software licence but installs it on 50 computers. Explain why this is illegal.
Mark scheme
- The licence permits use on a limited number of machines (1).
- Copying it onto more breaches copyright / the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1).
Recap & Key Terms 3 min
The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 protects creators' original work — software, music, films, images, text. Copying or sharing it without a licence or permission is infringement (piracy). Use work legally with a licence, permission, a free/open licence, or by creating your own.
- Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
- UK law protecting creators' rights over their original work.
- Copyright infringement
- Using protected work without permission or a licence (piracy).
- Licence
- Permission, with terms, to use someone's work or software.
- Creative Commons
- Licences creators use to let others reuse their work under set conditions.
Homework 1 min
Task (≤ 15 min): A classmate makes a YouTube video using a popular song and clips from a film. Explain the copyright issues and suggest two ways to make the video legal.
Model answer
Using the song and film clips without permission infringes the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, because they are protected works used without a licence. To make it legal: get a licence / permission from the rights holders; or use royalty-free / Creative Commons music and their own original footage instead.
Award marks for: identifying infringement and the Act (1); two valid legal fixes (2).