In the information society, databases are simply modern forms of "property" which, in common with most assets, can be sold or licensed to third parties. A database is often such a valuable asset that businesses are increasingly looking to exploit them in their own right. In practice, the majority of database owners tend to exploit databases by way of licence rather than sale, to take advantage of their inherent characteristics which allow them to be reproduced infinitely and effortlessly, and to be accessed by many users at once.

Database right exists independently of the copyright (if any) in a database and protects the compilation of information comprising the database. Database right is infringed if a person extracts or re-utilises all or a substantial part of the contents of the database without the owner's permission.

Please contact us if you would like further information about how to exploit a database that you own, or if you suspect that your database right has been infringed.