Introduction to Copyright Infringement: Access and Substantial Similarity

Infringement occurs when one or more of the exclusive rights granted to copyright owners (reproduction, adaptation, distribution, performance, or display) is violated, whether the violation occurs innocently or with intent. Because two identical works can coexist as long as they were independently created, the accused work must derive from the copyrighted work for infringement to exist. Even if two works are identical in every respect, if they were independently created, there can be no infringement.

Because it is difficult to find direct evidence that a work has been infringed (there are seldom witnesses who have observed any copying), courts generally infer that infringement ...

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