Copyright: Its History and Its Law Part 78

The Convention concluded this day in no wise affects the maintenance of existing conventions between the contracting States, provided always that such conventions confer on authors, or their lawful representatives, rights more extended than those secured by the Union, or contain other stipulations which are not contrary to the said Convention.

PROTOCOL

{Sidenote: Protocol integral part of Convention}

7. The present Final Protocol, which shall be ratified with the Convention concluded this day, shall be considered as forming an integral part of the said Convention, and shall have the same force, effect, and duration.

ARTICLE XVI

{Sidenote: Bureau of the International Union}

An International Office is established, under the name of "Office of the International Union for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works."

{Sidenote: Under control of Switzerland}

This Office, of which the expenses will be borne by Administrations of all the countries of the Union, is placed under the high authority of the Superior Administration of the Swiss Confederation, and works under its direction. The functions of this Office are determined by common accord between the countries of the Union.

PROTOCOL

{Sidenote: Organization}

5. The organization of the International Office, established in virtue of Article XVI of the Convention, shall be fixed by a regulation which shall be drawn up by the Government of the Swiss Confederation.

{Sidenote: Language of Office to be French}

The official language of the International Office will be French.

{Sidenote: Duties of International Office}

The International Office will collect all kinds of information relative to the protection of the rights of authors over their literary and artistic works. It will arrange and publish such information. It will study questions of general utility likely to be of interest to the Union, and, by the aid of doc.u.ments placed at its disposal by the different administrations, will edit a periodical publication in the French language treating questions which concern the Union. The governments of the countries of the Union reserve to themselves the faculty of authorizing, by common accord, the publication by the Office of an edition in one or more other languages, if experience should show this to be requisite.

{Sidenote: Will furnish information as to copyright}

The International Office will always hold itself at the disposal of members of the Union, with the view to furnish them with any special information they may require relative to the protection of literary and artistic works.

{Sidenote: Annual report of Director of International Bureau}

The Director of the International Bureau ... will make an annual report on his administration, which shall be communicated to all the members of the Union.

{Sidenote: Expenses of the International Office to be shared by contracting States}

The expenses of the Office of the International Union shall be shared by the contracting States. Unless a fresh arrangement be made, they cannot exceed a sum of sixty thousand francs a year. This sum may be increased by the decision of one of the Conferences provided for in Article XVII.

{Sidenote: Method of sharing expenses}

The share of the total expense to be paid by each country shall be determined by the division of the contracting and acceding States into six cla.s.ses, each of which shall contribute in the proportion of a certain number of units, viz.:

First cla.s.s 25 units Second cla.s.s 20 units Third cla.s.s 15 units Fourth cla.s.s 10 units Fifth cla.s.s 5 units Sixth cla.s.s 3 units

These coefficients will be multiplied by the number of States of each cla.s.s, and the total product thus obtained will give the number of units by which the total expense is to be divided. The quotient will give the amount of the unity of expense.

Each State will declare, at the time of its accession, in which of the said cla.s.ses it desires to be placed.

{Sidenote: Swiss Administration to prepare the budget of the International Office, etc.}

The Swiss Administration will prepare the budget of the Office, superintend its expenditure, make the necessary advances, and draw up the annual account, which shall be communicated to all the other Administrations.

ARTICLE XVII

{Sidenote: Revision of Convention}

The present Convention may be submitted to revisions in order to introduce therein amendments calculated to perfect the system of the Union.

{Sidenote: Future conferences}

Questions of this kind, as well as those which are of interest to the Union in other respects, will be considered in Conferences to be held successively in the countries of the Union by delegates of the said countries.

PROTOCOL

{Sidenote: Country where a conference is to be held to prepare programme}

(5.) The Administration of the country where a Conference is about to be held, will prepare the programme of the Conference with the a.s.sistance of the International Office.

{Sidenote: Director of the International Office to partic.i.p.ate}

The Director of the International Office will attend the sittings of the Conferences, and will take part in the discussion without a deliberative voice.

[ART. XVII, PAR. 3]

{Sidenote: Alterations of Convention must be by unanimous consent}

It is understood that no alteration in the present Convention shall be binding on the Union except by the unanimous consent of the countries comprising it.

PROTOCOL

{Sidenote: Next Conference to be held at Paris}

6. The next Conference shall be held at Paris between four and six years from the date of the coming into force of the Convention.

The French Government will fix the date within these limits after having consulted the International Office.

ARTICLE XVIII

{Sidenote: Accession of other countries}