On The Determination Of Copyright Infringement Of Wechat Works And Civil Liability

Along with the rapid development of mobile-phone communication technology, currently, cellphone users have surpassed the number of computer users and cellphones have become the most popular internet terminal. Under the new circumstance, "we media" is springing, with Wechat public platform the leading "we media" for its multiple conveniences over the past two years. Infringement of copyright in Wechat public platform, which has already hurt the enthusiasm of copyright owners and withered the propagation of information in public platforms, is emerging along with the popularity of Wechat public platform. Therefore, it is crucial to the future development of Wechat that the interests of different parties should be coordinated.This paper, first of all, tried to define "works" according to related academic theories and current laws. This paper determined that "Wechat works" are under the protection of Copyright Law. Secondly, this paper illustrated in depth the infringement subject and the specific behaviors of infringement act, and made clear the civil liability the different infringement subjects shall undertake. Should the owner of a subscription account send a copyright-protected work to its users without permission from copyright owner (owners), without writing the name of the author or the origin of the work, or even put the name of the owner of the subscription account, this very act should be considered as plagiarism. In addition, Wechat users who shared works to their liking in their Wechat Moments or forwarded a piece of work to others may also be considered as infringement of copyright. Furthermore, should Tencent, the owner of Wechat, is aware of the infringement of copyright yet no liability of notifying or deletion is performed, the company should also undertake the liability of infringement along with the infringement subject. The unauthorized forward in mobile internet could seriously damage the degree of initiative of authors. While authors are fighting for their copyright, "reasonable usage" and "legal permit" are becoming the ground of defense for people who forward or reprint their works. Another smoke-less war is raging in Wechat public platform under the new context of mobile internet.Based on related legal theory, this paper analyzed the "Wechat works" in Wechat public platform, and differentiated "Wechat works" and traditional paper works, and the necessity of protecting "Wechat works". From the perspectives of copyright owner (owners), users and Wechat operator, this paper also determined the nature of the acts of the three parties and the related infringement act, and illustrated the application condition of "reasonable usage" and "legal permit" Furthermore, this paper also put forward the specific measures to solve the infringement matter and suggestions to perfect the copyright-protecting system in Wechat public platform.