News & Blogs

In this Chair’s report, I would like to reflect on the very significant changes in CLNZ governance since 2014 which now position CLNZ well, to respond to current and future strategic challenges.

In a first for Aotearoa New Zealand, a group of visual artists is set to receive payment for the commercial reproduction of their work in auction house promotional material. The payments relate to a recent auction by Art+Object and will be made through Copyright Licensing New Zealand’s (CLNZ) auction house licensing scheme.

In the old days, if you saw your work being used without your permission, or in a derogatory way, you contacted the user and told them off, usually with a strongly worded letter, sometimes through a lawyer. Today, with the internet and all that website jazz, you might need to use something like a DMCA – Digital Millennium Copyright Act notice, aka DMCA takedown notice, or DMCA request.

In late 2020, Dahlia Malaeulu received one of our Contestable Fund grants to contribute towards the creation of Mila’s My Aganu’u Series. Created by an all-Pasifka team the series is focused on developing understanding and knowledge of Samoan culture.

Short answer – no, Fair Use does not apply in New Zealand. “Fair Use” is an American term with an American application. It’s an often-used legal defence mounted by people accused of infringing on someone else’s copyright.

If someone knowingly signs your name to a work that isn’t yours, and particularly if they gain an income from it, you have the law on your side.