Section 17
Duration of copyright in literary, musical or artistic works
Except as otherwise provided in this Act, copyright in any literary, musical or artistic work which subsists in such work under this
Act shall subsist during the life of the author and shall continue to subsist until the expiry of a period of fifty years after his death.
(2)
Where a literary, musical or artistic work had not been published before the death of the author, copyright which subsists in such work under this Act shall continue to subsist until the expiry of a period of fifty years computed from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the work was first published.
(3)
Where a literary, musical or artistic work is published anonymously or under a pseudonym, copyright which subsists in such work under this Act shall continue to subsist until the expiry of a period
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of fifty years computed from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the work was first published or first made available to the public or made, whichever is the latest:
Provided that in the event of the identity of the author becoming known, the duration of copyright shall be calculated in accordance with subsection (1).
(4)
In this section, a reference to “author” shall, in the case of a work of joint authorship, be construed as a reference to the author who dies last.