Does not asking permission when translating songs from foreign languages violate copyright in Vietnam?

The Editorial Board would like to answer your questions as follows:

Grounds for the generation of copyright of songs in Vietnam

Registering for copyright protection for a song is a product that is protected by law and ensures that your product will not be used illegally, such as: copying, abusing... Copyright registration is the best way to attest to human creativity and is the most worthwhile reward for the creator.

Pursuant to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 6 of the Law on Intellectual Property 2009, copyright shall arise at the moment a work is created and fixed in a certain material form. Although registration or publication is not required, if there is a dispute, it will become difficult to prove who owns the work when not registering the copyright of the song, affecting the rights and interests of the author, the owner of the song.

Is the copyright of a song translated from a foreign language protected? 

A song translation is a translation into another language based on the original language of the song. According to the provisions of Article 1 of the Law on Intellectual Property amended in 2022, the translation of a song from a foreign language is considered a derivative work.

Derivative work means a work that is based on one ore multiple works by translation from one language into another, adaptation, editing, notation, selection, modification, arrangement and other types of adaptation.. "

Making derivative works without the author's permission is an infringement of copyright. 

The Law on Intellectual Property amended in 2022 stipulates as follows:

"Article 28. Infringement of copyright

1. Infringement of the moral rights stipulated in Article 19 of this Law.

2. Infringement of the economic rights stipulated in Article 20 of this Law.

3. Failure to perform or fully perform the duties specified in Article 25, 25a and 26 of this Law.

4. Deliberately destroying or de-activating the effective technological measures implemented by the copyright owner to protect the copyright in his or her work in order to commit the acts specified in this Article and Article 35 of this Law.

5. Producing, distributing, importing, offering, selling, promoting, advertising, marketing, leasing, or storing a device, product or component for commercial purposes; introducing or providing services knowing or having reason to know that the equipment, product or component is manufactured or used for deactivation of an effective technological measure for protection of copyright.

6. Deliberate deletion, removal or change of RMI without consent of the author, copyright owner knowing or having reason to know that such act will encourage, facilitate or conceal copyright infringement as prescribed by law.

7. Deliberately distributing, importing for distribution, broadcasting, communicating or publicly providing copies of works knowing or having reason to know that RMI has been deleted, removed or changed without consent of the copyright owner; knowing or having reasons to know that such act will encourage, facilitate or conceal copyright infringement as prescribed by law.

8. Failure to comply with or fully comply with regulations in order to be exempt from legal liability of intermediary service providers prescribed in Clause 3 Article 198b of this Law."

Thus, making a derivative work without the permission of the author or the copyright owner of the work used to make the derivative work will be considered an infringement of copyright, except for translating works into Braille or another language for the visually impaired.

Therefore, a song translation into another language may be protected, but one must obtain the permission of the author, who is the copyright owner of the original song.

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